


Ward 13

by Master_Chocobo



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Alternate Universe - Hospital, Cancer, Death, Multi, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-21
Updated: 2017-02-21
Packaged: 2018-09-26 01:57:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 24,532
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9856811
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Master_Chocobo/pseuds/Master_Chocobo
Summary: "This is what I get for slacking off with my volunteer work..."The faded print at the bottom of the board in his guidance counselors office was almost insulting, but there was no real reason to replace it,after all everyone hated volunteering at the hospital."I didn't do the paper work, all the better jobs were gone, and you didn't do shit to fix that."Sora groaned as the bus pulled to a stop."No one to blame but yourself."Or Sora goes to volunteer at the local hospital and ends up making friends with the freaks in Ward 13





	1. Radiant Garden Hospital

**Author's Note:**

> _Itallics means it's being thought_

"Sora, you need the volunteer time, or you won't graduate."

_...well she didn't sugar coat that at all..._

Sora's guidance counselor could hardly be called delicate, but she was hardly as cold and impatient with her other students...Her office was usually filled with students who spend their lunch period smoking weed out in the parking lot,not with kids with perfect 4.0 averages...

 _...but most of her students don't wait until March to do their volunteer work..._ Sora was beating himself up internally, and not gently, for there was no one to get mad at but himself.

The bustle of Senior year, along with all of the meetings and paper work it brought proved to be too much for Sora, as this was not the only bit of paper work he had missed (though no others were quite so crucial) already he was receiving past deadlines for applications to other colleges, all of them prestigious, none of them he was interested in attending.

"Are there any jobs left?"He asked, letting the tiniest bit of panic fill him. _You just had to graduate Sora, that was your one job and you blew it..._

"Yes, one."Ms. Olette smiled, though it hardly seemed genuine.It looked more like the smile one would give their enemy if their dick got caught in their zipper.

Despite this smile however Sora felt himself relax. _So you didn't screw up too badly._

Ms. Olette pulled some paperwork out of her bottomless filing cabinet, and set it on top of her scratched up desk.The heading in bold letters was almost a joke, as if the contents were inviting someone to a bake sale.

**RADIANT GARDEN HOSPITAL**

_...well shit..._

 

Five minutes of filling out the paper work (during which Ms. Olette was grinning, the sadist) and Sora made his way out to the main office, where Hayner was getting busted for something or other for the umpteenth time.The board where a seemingly endless list of crossed off organizations and companies.Some student from who knew how many years ago had carved a messy cross above it, and the staff never felt like sanding it down. _Our school system is the best..._ Sora glared at the board as if it had kicked his pigeon.

Once a job was taken or they no longer needed volunteers, it was supposed to get crossed off and at the end of the year it would be replaced for the incoming Juniors.

At that point of the year, there was only one place that hadn't been crossed off yet ( _Because everyone else was SMART enough to get theirs done early_ Sora berated himself) and it sat at the very bottom, completely faded out, so only RAI DE HPITAL was readable.It was almost insulting, but why would anyone fix it?It would be thrown out in a few months anyway, and no one ever wanted to volunteer there.

But with the paper work already done, and literally no other options(yes Sora spent some of those five minutes pondering any alternatives) he took the pen he stole from Ms. Olette and crossed off the faded letters.

 

 _This early, every Saturday, for the next two months..._ Sora held the handrail so he wouldn't fall.There were only a few salary men and a woman who wasn't nearly as dressed as she should have been on the bus, but Sora didn't want to risk falling asleep and missing his stop.

_This is your fault Sora, you slacked off and now you gotta spend the next few weekends cleaning up after a bunch of dying people and having to see families lose loved ones..._

It was no secret that Sora's friends had died the previous year there.They had been students, Kairi and Riku were quite popular, and for whatever reason they chose to hang out with Sora, the nerdy loner kid. They were siblings, and their mother had been diagnosed with HIV,which made them positive as well.When Sora met them Freshman year, he was shocked, as they both seemed so healthy.Riku was on the track team, and Kairi was in the student council.Their blue eyes (both a different shade of blue but still shocking in their own individual intensity) were always filled with the laughter of a particularly good joke, or the seriousness of a heart surgeon going in for a transplant.So filled with life.

During his Junior year Sora visited them at the hospital when they were too sick to go to school, bringing them homework (but only sometimes, because seriously, who wants to see homework when they're sick?) or just goofing off.

But in December, Kairi died.

It was a devastating loss for Sora.Kairi was the kindest person he had ever met, the only girl he ever remembered never talking bad about anyone.She didn't deserve to die like that, she should have had the chance to graduate, fall in love, get married, grow old and die content and surrounded by people who cared about her.

Instead, Riku had to discover her body curled up in bed in the morning.

But anything he felt paled in comparison to what Riku went through.His closest companion and only real moral support was gone.

That week, in an attempt to cheer him up, Sora came to visit him with their favorite Pixar movie "The Incredibles" only to find an empty bed.The light in the bathroom was on, and he could hear retching sounds.He stepped inside and saw Riku slumped over the toilet, tears in his eyes.

It was then, he noticed that Riku was going through way worse shit than he was.

The next few months were hell.Sora visited every day after school, getting a part time job to pay for the bus trips over.His grades were falling and college applications were going to have to be due at some point, but that didn't seem to matter much.He never cared about education much either way.

Riku had apparently given up, whereas when Kairi was alive he woke up every day with a smile,he seemed tired all the time, as if simply existing was becoming a chore.He always seemed to be in pain too,which made Sora realize that Riku had been hiding it from him all that time.

On the last day of school, when everyone was out partying, getting drunk, and making the mistakes Seniors were supposed to make, Sora was trying to make Riku laugh. It was a challenge he issued himself to try and cheer him up, get the life back in his eyes.Sometimes it worked, but mostly Riku just gave him pity smiles.

"Sora."Riku's voice was hollow, it started sounding like that a few weeks prior, ever since he had an IV hooked up to pump him full of drugs.

Sora, who was in the middle of an anecdote about a blonde and a bar (spoiler alert, she walks into it) stopped suddenly.

"What do you think happens when we die?"He asked.

Sora's insides froze, and he struggled to think of the right thing to say."I guess, it depends...on what you believe in and shit."

Riku nodded."Yeah, I guess no one would really know for sure."

They sat in silence for a while.Any jokes Sora had lined up seemed to disappear.

"Do you think I'll ever see Kairi again?"He asked, his voice growing a little hoarse.

".....if there is a heaven, then yes.Absolutely.If reincarnation is a thing, I think you will.Though you may not both be human, or even the same species, I think you will."It was the only thing Sora could think of that would possibly give Riku any comfort.

"And what if there's nothing?"Riku asked."What if we just stop existing, and there's nothing after?"

 _Then there would be no real point to living_ Sora thought, but he didn't dare say aloud."I think if that's the case, then the dick head Buddhists on Third Ave. will get a rude awakening."

That was it.There was no comforting someone so deep in despair, and there was no denying that something so horrible was possible,so that was all Sora could think to say.

Riku spared him another pitying smile, his icey eyes still empty of the light they once held, and they went back to their previous conversation.

 

 

The next day, the doctors wouldn't let Riku have any visitors.

The day after, Sora went to see him, and Riku had a bunch of tubes strapped to him.

The day after that, his dad (the only one healthy enough to visit him) was weeping at his bedside while an unconscious Riku lay stationary, his heart monitor breaking the endless silence.

After that, Riku woke up, and with a shaking voice, he told Sora he was tired....so, so tired......

The day after that day, Sora walked in on Riku and Kairi's father, bent over in grief, tell his only living child that if he wanted to let go, he could.Sora left immediately after that.

Six days after Sora failed to come up with a proper answer for Riku's questions...Riku died.

 

 

"What?!"Sora jumped, his head pressing into the bar, the only thing keeping him upright.

 _Crap I still fell asleep!_ The next stop he ran off and started sprinting down the street.Lady luck was apparently on his side however, as he was only about four blocks away from the hospital.

Not a particularly big or small hospital,it was three stories with a large main building and several wings of varying lengths and sizes jutting from it.The parking lot only had a handful of cars parked in it, though it lacked the gratuitous amount of liter that most other parking lots had, so it felt emptier.There were a few dead flowers planted outside in the flower beds,they wouldn't even think of replanting until the warmth came back.

Panting and exhausted, he climbed the stairs into the familiar lobby of Radiant Garden Hospital.It hadn't changed at all, and Sora was almost suffocated in the memories of waiting for the two most accepting people on earth to be healthy again.The same ripped chair(Sora knew it was the only one that was ripped, but he used to sit in the same one all the time) the same front desk with its unfortunate shiny wooden surface, the lights which still made Sora's head ache.

"Yes, can I help you?"The receptionist looked up from her computer to look at Sora.A tiny woman with a pixie face and thin rimmed glasses perched on her nose.

"Yes, I'm Sora Strife, I'm the volunteer from Traverse Town, I believe Ms. Olette sent you an email?"

The receptionist grew a warm smile."Ah yes, we were expecting you.Thank you very much for choosing to volunteer here!"

_Not like I had much of a choice..._

"Please follow me."The tiny receptionist hopped off her chair and swept some of her blonde hair back into its bun (due to these similarities, and the fact he didn't feel like remembering a name, Sora decided to nickname her Tinker Bell) She had some paper work in her hands, and after checking some stuff walked briskly to their location.A few parents whose children presumptuously got themselves hurt were buying flowers or stuffed animals at the gift shop, some nurses gave Tinker Bell a nod while they hurried off like the busy bees they were.

Sora had hoped beyond hope he wouldn't be working in the wing where they kept Riku and Kairi, and thankfully Tinker Bell led him to a different end of the massive hospital.Sora couldn't tell if it was just him, but the fluorescent lights seemed to be dimmer in that wing, the pale blue paint on the walls more faded.

"So we have been under staffed for some time, and there are a few patients in this wing that require...full time supervision."

"Are they really sick?"Sora asked.

"Well yes, but it doesn't really have to do with that..."The nurse mumbled something under her breath, but Sora didn't catch it.

"You will be watching them every Saturday from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m.Your responsibilities include cleaning up after the patients in your ward, making sure they're comfortable, making sure they don't break anything ( _What?_ ) and notifying us if any problems arise.You can leave once the other nurses begin their shift."

"Got it."

Tinker Bell led him to a singular hallway, the plate next to the double doors reading Ward 13.

"This is your ward.There are fourteen patients in here, they all have cancer.Most of them are fairly stable, however one of the patients has stage five, so she'll require more treatment than the others."

_Damn, that sucks._

Something from the corner of Sora's eye caught his attention.He turned, and noticed it was a sandwich, most likely from the cafeteria, laying unceremoniously on the floor near the waste basket.

Suddenly, a rather loud crash came from inside Ward 13.

"What was that?"Sora asked Tinker Bell, but she was already through the double doors, a dangerous look in her eyes.

"DEMYX,AXEL,ROXAS GET BACK IN YOUR ROOMS BEFORE I TIE YOU THERE MYSELF!!!"Three very non-masculine screams came from the other side of the doors, and suddenly Sora would rather risk the long walk back to Traverse Town.

But he needed that diploma, so Sora took a deep breath and pushed the door open.

It was one long hallway, with several doors on either side of it.Two of those doors were shutting as he walked in, but Tinker Bell was holding the ear of one of the patients, a dangerous glint in her eyes.

The patient was probably only nineteen years old.He had an odd hair cut, sorta like a mullet but less stupid.He was tall and slim with blue eyes, which were currently filled with fear of the tiny fairy receptionist.

"I'm sorry Ms. Wells."He was crying, (or pretending to cry, Sora couldn't help but notice the guy stealing glances at him, apparently questioning his presence) while Tinker Bell dragged him towards Sora.

"Demyx,this is Sora.He will be watching this Ward for the next two months."

Sora gave an awkward wave.The patient, 'Demyx', slipped out of her grasp and held out a hand to Sora."S'up kid!Welcome to hell!"

_Is it too late to find different volunteer work?_

 

Sora had gone around to the rooms of the fourteen patients, and managed to learn names and diagnoses.

Xemnas, a forty-something old guy with long grey hair and amber eyes that didn't seem at all natural.He apparently had liver cancer.From what Sora could tell he didn't really interact with the other patients much,but he seemed decent enough,polite and soft spoken.

The others on the other hand....

Xigbar, thirty something old guy who was possibly the most terrifying looking guy Sora had ever seen with his own two eyes.He himself however, was missing one eye (whether it had anything to do with his cancer Sora didn't know) and had long black hair with grey streaks in it.The man had liver cancer, probably because he had a very obvious addiction to alcohol.During his introduction to the older man, Tinker Bell had been searching his room and pulled something out from under his bed, and stuffed it into one of her pockets.Xigbar then gave her a very rude finger and told her where to shove that bottle.

_Amazing how something can kill someone, but they still want it more than anything.Disgusting..._

Xaldin, he had to be in his fifties, either that or he hadn't aged well.He was a brute of a man with long black hair that was pulled into a massive pony,and had mutton chops as dark as the rest of his hair.He didn't talk much, but this could have been attributed with the fact that he had cancer in his brain.Whether stage two cancer affects concentration in the brain Sora didn't know, but he didn't want to assume anything about these people.

Vexen was easily the oldest looking person in the Ward.He was thin and sickly looking, with long blonde hair and electric green eyes.Stage three pancreatic cancer was apparently pretty bad, even at stage three,so he must have remained in bed a lot.He was quite verbose, and introduced himself with a handshake, but no smile.From his large vocabulary, Vexen must have been a scholar of some sort, _Perhaps a teacher?_ As formal and restricted as Vexen seemed, Sora thought the old man seemed nice.

Lexaeus was the largest occupant of Ward 13.He was a big muscly brute with brown curly hair and a chin as strong as Tinker Bell's sass.His amber eyes made Sora feel incredibly uncomfortable as he tried to introduce himself to the middle aged man.He only said two words in his time with him,"Hello," and "Lexaeus," which probably meant he wasn't sociable in general.But considering his had was the size of Sora's face, he decided to be as polite as possible.From what he understood the man had lymphoma,so any exercising the man might've done in the past had completely ground to a halt.

When Sora saw Zexion's tiny form in bed, he was pretty shocked,Zexion couldn't have been more than two years older than Sora, yet he was sitting in bed, reading a book nonchalantly as if there wasn't a disease in his kidney that was slowly killing him.Zexion looked up at Sora, he had medium length slate hair and dark grey eyes, and he almost looked like a child.But Sora shook off the thought, _I shouldn't think too much about the people here,_ and introduced himself.Zexion seemed quite shy, and pulled up his knees to cradle his book closer, but he introduced himself back.

 _To get sick so young, and to seem like a normal kid._ Sora didn't know how people like Riku, Kairi, or Zexion did it.

Saix was quite the patient, and not in a good way.He glared at Sora the moment he entered his room, and when he had to introduce himself he didn't offer his hand or even a shadow of a smile.He had long periwinkle hair and amber eyes, and was most certainly in his twenties.But the most prominent feature about the man was a giant scar in the shape of an X that split his face right along his nose.He was how Sora expected everyone to act, sour and moody.Normal people despaired at being diagnosed with lung cancer, Sora figured he'd be just as surly if he was.

Axel was almost the complete opposite of Saix, the complete opposite of how Sora figured anyone would feel at being diagnosed with lung cancer.For such a young guy (had to be at oldest twenty five) he seemed pretty cool with the fact he was dying.Sora recognized the name as one of the ones Tinker Bell had shouted, but hadn't the chance to see his...rather unique hair.It was long and as red as fire and stuck up in any direction it could find, and his eyes were the most startling green Sora had ever seen.Under each eye was a black tattoo in the shape of a tear drop.He was a thin guy, really tall, making him look sickly.But when Sora held his hand out, Axel grasped it firmly and shook it vigorously, a large grin on his face.

That grin worried Sora a tad, but he figured Axel was one of the more friendly patients.

Luxord was playing solitaire when Sora came in, and asked for a round of Twenty Two Pick-up without even waiting for a name.Tinker Bell whispered under her breath that unless he felt like losing all of his money, don't put any money on one of the games.Luxord had short white-blonde hair and a matching goatee.He had a few earrings in one ear.When he introduced himself Sora noticed he had a bit of an accent.With his love of cards must have came a love for alcohol,as he also had liver cancer.Luxord didn't care much for Sora as a person, but kept insisting he play cards with him.Tinker Bell made him put the cards away and get some sleep, which he begrudgingly did.

Hey, Sora couldn't judge.If he had nothing better to do than play cards all day then he would want some company.

Marluxia was.......there was no real way to accurately describe Marluxia.Upon entering the room, the pink haired man seemed friendly enough, however Sora could tell that the young man (probably around Saix's age) was dissatisfied with his presence.In contrast to this attitude, his room was filled with pots of roses, some pink, some red, some white, and some orange.Not exactly the most threatening colors.However Marluxias eyes held a coldness in them which made Sora's heart shiver.The man apparently had skin cancer, which prevented him from going outside to see flowers, so it made some sense to Sora that he'd have all those roses.

After they left his room, Tinker Bell told Sora that every rose was taken care of by that one man.So he couldn't be all bad...right?

Larxene was the first girl (other than Tinker Bell) that Sora had seen in the Ward, and probably the only one to make Sora fear for his life.She had breast cancer, but that didn't stop her from sneering at him from her bed, giving him the finger, and threatening to tase him later. (Apparently, it was a rumor going around the Ward that she had a taser hidden in her room, and used it on Demyx.Sora wouldn't have given such a rumor any mind, if he hadn't seen Tinker Bell searching around the girls room while they were talking) Larxene looked almost like a bug, she had large green eyes,and short blonde hair that parted on two sides of her head to give her the illusion of antennae.She kept sneering at Sora while he told her about himself.

Once they left all Sora had to think about her was... _What a bitch._ Didn't quite matter that she had cancer.

The moment Sora walked into Roxas' room, he felt like he had been slapped in the face.The boy had to be the same age as him, if not possibly younger.The boy was small, and had bright blue eyes and blonde hair that stuck up everywhere, just like Sora's.The two could have been related, but Sora knew that was impossible.The boy had been diagnosed with brain cancer, but he gave Sora a kind smile that tugged at the heartstrings in Sora's chest.The boy was a little soft at first, but by the time Sora left, Roxas had been able to give him a toothy grin.

Sora tried not to think of Riku,before he died, when he was so optimistic like that.

The last room in the hall, Tinker Bell warned Sora that she may not be awake.Apparently the very sick patient was in there.

The moment Sora walked in,he wanted to run out.It was as if Kairi had come back to haunt him with her death.

The girl in the bed was so tiny,so very tiny...She was skin and bones, and her black hair was short and thin.There were tubes in her chest and an oxygen mask attached to her face, a machine huffing away for her at her bedside.

But her eyes...her eyes were open and...

_They're just like Kairi's._

The girl glanced over at Sora without turning her head, and gave him a small smile.

"This is Sora,he's going to be helping out these next few months."Tinker Bell, who had been impatient and crass with the others, gave her a kind and sweet smile, her voice dropping a few volumes.

He took her hand in his (because he knew from experience that when people look like her, they don't have the energy to even raise their arms) and shook it gently.

The girl, in a tiny voice that sounded like a bird's, said "My name is Xion."

She couldn't talk much after that, and Sora tried not to make her.But from what he knew about her Sora could tell she had stage five lung cancer and was undergoing treatment full time.

_I don't want to volunteer here anymore,and it's only my first day._

 

After meeting everyone he started his shift, and discovered that (not very shockingly) Axel, Demyx, and Roxas didn't want to be in a hospital.The moment Tinker Bell was out those double doors, the three attempted to sneak by him while he was looking over some of the treatment procedures for the patients.Fortunately it's very hard to miss Axel's bright hair, and Sora stopped them, though not without some difficulty.Evidently, they were still strong enough to gang up on one sixteen year old boy and hurry to the unguarded door.Sora poked his head into the nearest room, Lexaeus's, and asked for help.The big guy dragged Demyx and Axel to a bench while Sora grabbed Roxas by the wrist and dragged him along.

"Why do you insist on trying this every week?"Lexaeus asked huffing in annoyance.This is a regular occurrence...apparently.

"Because I need to go to the bathroom."Axel responded.

"There's a perfectly good one here in this Ward."Sora offered,slightly impatient.

"Yes but I'm allergic to the crappy food here, so unless you all want to smell what has been fermenting in my ass for the past week I suggest I use the one in the main building."

"Charming Axel.Very charming."Lexaeus cringed.Sora however was trying not to let the fact that he was trying not to laugh show.

"Welp first impressions are everything!"Axel grinned at Sora."So kid, why are you volunteering to work with Ward 13?Not enough horror stories about this place to scare you away?"

"Horror stories?"Sora asked. _They couldn't possibly know,right?_

"People who get placed in Ward 13 don't survive."Demyx wiggled his fingers at Sora spookily, not at all perturbed by the fact he himself was a member of Ward 13.

Roxas shook his head."No, there is one..."

Axel shook his head reluctantly, his red mane slapping Roxas in the face."Yeah, but Naminé could always relapse."

"Way to be positive Axel."Lexaeus scowled.Roxas shoved Axel off the bench, though he was clearly doing it in jest.

"Alright, alright I give."Axel raised his hands in surrender, still grinning.

Sora however was still struggling with the first part of the conversation."So only one person who was admitted to this Ward has ever been cured?Why is that?"

"Probably because Ward 13 is where they put all the freaks that the nurses don't want to have near the other patients."Demyx said in a singsong voice.

"Ward 13,the place where they put the fuck ups, society's dumpster for the ones who assed away their entire lives with stupid shit, where the nobodies go!"Axel and Roxas chanted together.

"What?"Sora looked to Lexaeus, who was the sanest one there, but even the brute was nodding to what they said.

"Everyone here is only here because of the dumb decisions they made."Lexaeus said in his baritone voice."Axel smoked like a German concentration camp." ( _Holy shit what the fuck is wrong with these guys?!?!_ )

Axel smirked and shrugged."Young kid, hot girls, you put two and two together."

"I noticed the tumors for years,didn't say shit.Once the doctors found them they knew I had to be out here as opposed to some simple treatment."Roxas shrugged, looking morbidly amused in his own stupidity.

"Weed."Demyx grinned proudly as if he had somehow won."Loooots and loooots o' weed."

"I envy you you know."Axel pouted at Demyx."If I was gonna get cancer anyway I would have chosen to get as high as the sun."

_Or you could have not smoked anything at all.._

"Everyone in here is the lowest of society, don't got any family to visit, we don't even want to be here, but for most of the guys here there's nothing better."Lexaeus mumbled."Which is why I don't understand why you keep trying to escape."

"I want to go to the beach!"  
"I want to go to a concert!"  
"I want to see the Penguins at the Central Park zoo!"

The three spoke simultaneously.Demyx and Roxas gave Axel an exasperated look.

He looked offended."Have either of you ever seen those fuckers?!They're adorable as hell!"

"You can do all that when you get better."Sora insisted.

The three rebels gave Sora a look that made him feel like the dumbest person in the room.

 

"Larxene I have some medication you're supposed to ta-...Larxene?"

Sora had returned to Larxene's room at noon to find she wasn't there.

"Larxene?"Sora gave a call to her down the hall.

"She's in Marly's room!"Xigbars coarse voice echoed.

Sora walked next door to find the two almost buried in the roses that were everywhere.Marluxia had a watering can and was carefully tending them, while Larxene took each one he had finished and admired it carefully, turning each leaf and petal in hand as if to commit the hundreds to memory.

The scene looked a little too intimate to interrupt, so Sora left the pills on the table near the door and left.

 

 

"On three.One,two,THREE!!!"Axel and Roxas shouted from the end of the hall and there was a loud banging noise.

 _That's where Xions room is!_ Not wanting the two rowdy patients to disturb the girl he rushed over,ready to give them a piece of his mind.

When he got to her door, he noticed it was wide open,and there was a tinkling sound coming from inside.Sora carefully glanced in to see what was happening.

Roxas and Axel were rolling on the ground, groaning in pain near the window to her room.

Tiny Xion was laughing,and it sounded like little bells were ringing in Sora's ear, he hadn't heard such a beautiful sound since Kairi left.

"What were you two doing?"Sora asked, any anger he had at them replaced with confusion.

"Trying to open the window so Xion could get some fresh air."Roxas was holding his shoulder and biting his bottom lip in pain.

"Did you try to ram the window open?!"Sora couldn't help but raise his voice. _What the hell?!_ "What if the glass had broken?!"

"It won't break."Axel was the first to recover.He sat up and scratched the back of his head."It's made of reinforced glass,and it's not made to open.Patients with our status aren't allowed, because the big guys think we'll try to jump out of them....which is pretty fair."

"If you knew that then why did you try to ram it?"Sora asked.

He got his answer when he saw the two glance over at the still giggling Xion.

_Huh..._

 

 

"Say Xaldin?"Sora was finishing up with Demyx's report when he noticed the gentleman on his way to the bathroom."I noticed something,why don't your rooms have TVs in them?"

Xaldin spared him a glance and said,"Because there is no need for one."

"Yeah but,what if you guys want to relax and can't leave bed?"

Xaldin sighed as if he was hearing something so dumb he couldn't believe it."Our treatment leaves us almost catatonic,and no one visits.The only time we would use a TV is the weekend,but they are expensive."

And that was that.

 

"Sora,how was your first day volunteering?"Sora's dad called to him the moment he set foot in the house.

"Good,I guess."He took off his shoes and trudged up the stairs, intending to get three hours of sleep for what he had just endured.

"Not so fast young man."Sora's mom stopped him at the base of the stairs,a paper in her hands.

_...report card..._

She held the paper to the light for Sora to read,and he was suddenly filled with relief.

"You know when you make that face it makes me think I've done something wrong."Sora groaned.

"Straight A's.I'm so proud!This is such a big improvement from last year."His mom was tearing up and trapped him in a rib crushing hug.

_Yeah well my two best friends aren't dying in a hospital this year..._

"We haven't seen any letters from schools in the mail.Are you sure the applications have been getting in ok?"His dad asked.

 _I haven't sent any in._ "Yeah, I guess they just want to look over everyone's transcripts before making final decisions."

 

There was no point to filling out the numerous college applications Ms. Olette gave him.

_It's not like I particularly like doing anything.And there's nothing I'm really good at either, I'm just kinda mediocre at everything..._

Riku used to tell him,"You're smart enough to get into any college you want, so it doesn't matter what you want to do, just pick a road, go down it, and if you like it keep going, if not then change the road."

But it never seemed that simple in all his talks with Ms. Olette.

Kairi once told him, "If you want to take a year off before going to college that's fine.Figure out what you want to do, don't be in a rush."

_Yeah, that's not what mom and dad think._

One day while visiting the two, they had this conversation,and Sora got so frustrated that he said, "It doesn't seem that important to you two, you could do anything you wanted and you wouldn't have to live with the consequences!"

Time stopped for them.

Sora couldn't believe he had said what he just said.His mouth stopped working, apparently satisfied with the damage it had caused, so Sora just left after that.

_That was basically me telling them what they do doesn't matter, because they're going to die._

The very next day he skipped school to visit them and apologized.Sora may or may not have been sobbing the whole time.They forgave him, but Sora knew that he had hurt them both.

And knowing that he could never take that back was one of his biggest regrets.

 

 

"Xion is not doing well,so make sure the patients, and by patients I mean Axel and Roxas, do not visit her."Tinker Bell led Sora back to Ward 13.

"Ok." _I'm going to need Lexaeus's help again._

When he entered Ward 13 he went through the he rounds Tinker Bell had informed him of.He gave everyone their required medications and some breakfast from a tray outside (Axel's earlier assessment of the food appeared to be quite accurate) He made sure to check Xigbar's, Axel's,Demyx's,Larxene's ( _they still don't know about that taser_ ) and Luxord's rooms for anything they shouldn't have.

While finishing up Sora ran into Zexion, who was standing out in the hallway with his book.

"Hello."Zexion nodded to Sora,and he did the same.

"Need anything?"Sora asked.

"No, I was just waiting for Vexen to wake up."

Sora leaned against the wall for a brief break."I noticed that you are his nephew.The paper work just went over it briefly, but I don't know much about it."

Zexion hummed in thought."Vexen is my uncle, however my parents died when I was very young.So he basically raised me."

Sora felt his chest tighten."I see."

"Why are you really here?"Zexion asked softly, like Eeyore.

"I needed to volunteer."Sora didn't elaborate that there was nothing else for him to do, but Zexion appeared to have understood."So what do you all do during the week?"

"Mostly treatment.Some are currently going through chemo, but most are just getting medicine and some injections that make us too sleepy to function during the week.Thats why people like Axel, Demyx, and Roxas get so rowdy during the weekend, it's the only time we get to enjoy ourselves."

"Huh..." _And they can't leave this crummy hospital during the weekends?Can't even watch some shitty shows?_

Sora suddenly got an idea, and he couldn't help a mischievous smile.

 

 

"Kings Game?"Xemnas asked.

"How do you play?"Demyx already looked excited.

 _I can't believe none of these psychos have ever played Kings Game!_ All of the patients(except for Xion, as she was too tired to leave bed) were sitting on chairs made in a circles in the waiting area.Upon seeing the circle, Xigbar immediately walked away, apparently not in the mood for "Group Building Excersises".Sora got him to join the others, but only after promising that he wouldn't make them do trust falls or whatever the fuck "Group Building Excersises" were.

"So we each draw straws for the round.They all have numbers on them,except one,which has a star.Whoever gets the star is the King-"

"-or queen."Larxene interjected,glaring at Sora.

"Or queen..."Sora conceded,much to her satisfaction."...and can tell the numbers to do something.You can't use names, only numbers, so you don't know who will have to do what until the order has been given."

"And we can give any orders we want?"Roxas was looking excited.

"The Kings Orders are Absolute."Sora said simply.

Some of the patients looked dangerously excited,some looked bored and/or apprehensive.Saïx walked away from the group to try and get to his room.

"I haven't explained the punishment game!"Sora called after him,which made Saïx hesitate.

"What is the punishment game?"Luxord asked.

"Well if someone refuses to do an order from the king,they must be punished.Whoever refuses an order must run past Tinker Bell in the main building."Sora decided.

He was delighted to see that that had raised the stakes a bit,for everyone knew of Tinker Bell's wrath.

"I thought we were the only ones who called her that."Axel grinned.

Vexen shook his head sadly, though an amused smile was on his face."Unfortunately that nickname is far too apt for her own good."

"Are we ready?"Sora asked, holding out the straws end first so they couldn't see the numbers written on them. (it was easier to use chopsticks,but this was the best Sora had on hand)Sora couldn't help but smile when he saw Saïx rejoin the group.

Everyone drew straws.

"Who's the King?"Sora asked,looking down at his own number.Seven.

"I am."Xaldin smiled.

"Boooo."Axel groaned."It won't be anything fun then."

Xaldin glared at him."Fine.I want number eleven to switch robes with number six."

Larxene looked around the group."Who's number eleven?Which one of you am I switching with?"

Sora looked around the group to see Lexaeus looking pointedly at the floor.

"Lex..."He started,not wanting to laugh at the poor guy.

Though once the others noticed they exploded in laughter.

"Shit,your robes probably smell like sweat and dick!"Larxene gagged.

"Well yours are more than likely three sizes small!Think of who has it worse!"Lexaeus and Larxene both went to the bathroom.In five minutes they returned.

Larxene was green and wearing a too large robe that was tied triple knotted to keep it from flying open.

Lexaeus was trying not to take too long strides so he wouldn't flash them his bag of batteries.

"I think I like this game."Xigbar was grinning from ear to eyepatch."Probably would be better with a cup of scotch for everyone..."

"Yeah,like you need that."Marluxia rolled his eyes.

 

The game went on for some time.The highlights included Axel making Zexion ride down the hall on the service cart,Xemnas making Roxas give Saïx a piggy back ride (one that ended quite soon, seeing as the size difference) Saïx attempting at getting revenge by making number one and number four kiss, but resulted in Sora having to kiss Xigbar (something he would never,EVER mention to his parents when he went home) and Larxene making Luxord sing every time he talked for an entire round.Turns out the man had quite the lovely falsetto.

Just as everyone was finally starting to relax, Vexen stood up and rushed for the bathroom.Zexion hurried after him, Sora soon after, already putting in the number Tinker Bell gave him for emergencies.

Vexen was on the floor of the bathroom, his hair being held by Zexion.He hadn't made it to the toilet,and was purging himself of his crappy breakfast on the grey tiles.

"This happens sometimes."Zexion explained,patting his uncle on the back."He's fine."

Sora put his phone away and went to get some cleaning supplies.When he returned to the bathroom,mop in hand, Vexen was being led back to his room by Zexion.

_I almost forgot...all of these people are dying..._

 

 

"Hey did you hear?"Some kid whose name Sora never bothered to remember was talking to his buddy a few rows behind him."Someone crossed out the Radiant Garden Hospital spot on the volunteer board."

"Really?Aw geez,who do you think got stuck with it?"

"Don't know,but I don't envy them."

The Radiant Garden Hospital volunteer spot was something that was offered to Seniors every year, but no one ever took it because it was taboo.Many years ago (or so the story went) a student at their school volunteered for the spot.When he got back he told everyone about the horrors he endured.

"The patients were filled with tubes,and they were all screaming in agony!I had to clean this one guys bedpan,and it was filled with blood and shit!I had to hold one of the patients down while the doctor gave him his injections!"The legends were all horrible,however over time they might have become more exaggerated,to the point where no one knew what the truth was.

But that didn't matter.Every year the seniors told the juniors about the horrors of that job,and it's remained empty ever since.

Until Sora.

Of course people didn't care too much about that story,it was just something to make the days at school less boring,so almost every single student latched onto the rumor like starving mosquitoes.

_It's not that bad,but I suppose some people might have a hard time handling the patients._

 

 

Xion was allowed to have visitors the next time Sora came.She still looked awful, but she was conscious at least.Roxas and Axel were with her of course,their crude banter making her laugh that incredible laugh again.

That day however there was a visitor Sora had never seen before.She had shoulder length blonde hair,pale skin and a heart shaped face with clear blue eyes,and she was wearing a short white dress.She looked about the same age as Xion, and if Sora didn't know any better he could've sworn he saw some of Kairi in her too.

"Hey guys!"The girl called down the hall, and some of the occupants came to greet her.

"Naminé!!!"Roxas crushed the girl into a hug."What are you doing here?"

"I heard Xion can have visitors,so I wanted to say hi!"

"S'up girl."Axel gave her a quick wave and his usual snark.

"S'up asshole."She smiled at him.

"This is Sora."Sora felt Axel clap him on the back,nearly knocking him off his feet."The dude who has to clean our diapers."

Naminé noticed Sora and gave him a sunny smile that made him think of fluffy kittens in a basket.It was that damn adorable."Hi Sora!Sorry you have to watch over those guys."

"Don't lie!You love us!"Axel stuck his tongue out at her.

"Yeah!"Roxas copied him, looking very much like a younger version of him.

"So are we going to see her or what?"Naminé asked.

"Sora?"Sora turned around and saw Eeyore,saw Zexion peeking out from Vexen's room.

"Yeah Zexion?Is Vexen ok?"

Zexion nodded."He wanted to talk to you when you got here."

 _What does he need me for?_ Sora followed the young man into Vexen's room.

The old man looked thinner,if that was possible,but he greeted Sora the same as always.He asked Zexion to leave them alone,and soon Sora was face to face with the elder.

"You did not choose to volunteer here,Zexion has told me, and I believe him."

Sora reluctantly nodded his head.

"I want you to know,that it has been a while since I've seen many of those people,and I include Zexion and myself in this,laugh the way they had when you came last week."Vexen sighed,long and tired."This Ward is not filled with laughter.Never has been."

"...how long have you been here?"

"...almost nineteen years."

Sora tried not to look shocked,but Vexen smirked a little at the look on his face."But Zexion told me you practically raised him!"

"I was pemitted to leave this hospital so I could continue to teach at my university,and support the child.My brother,he and his wife died in a car crash a few months after I was diagnosed.Zexion wasn't even a year old.They had no closer family,and I didn't want my nephew to go with some strangers,so I took him in regardless of my condition.Possibly irresponsible of me,but I'm glad to have had the chance to raise him."

"You are in high school,correct Sora?"Vexen suddenly asked him.

"Yes."

"What do you want to do?"

"...I'm not really sure how to answer that sir."Perhaps it was because the old man was dying,perhaps it was because he was admirable for having raised a child while dying of cancer,but Sora didn't feel the need to lie to him like he did with his teachers and parents."There's nothing I'm passionate about,and while I could get into a wide range of schools,I don't know what I would possibly want to spend the rest of my life doing."

Vexen nodded like he understood."If you can believe it,I don't decide to become a teacher until I was diagnosed."

"Wait what?!"Sora asked,unable to hide the disbelief in his voice.

"Yes,I had a degree in the Sciences,but that was because I was good at it.Any interest I had was measly to satisfy small curiosities.Once I graduated university, I had no idea what I wanted.I spent some time working smaller jobs,just enough to live in a small run down apartment."

"When they diagnosed me,I was only twenty eight.I felt like I had been cheated,like I had wasted something important,I never did anything with myself.Then after that my only family died,leaving me with a kid.I didn't know what to do,or how to save either of us."

"Then I met with an old classmate of mine in a bar.I had tutored him for almost the entirety of our Senior year,and he was able to graduate and go to college.He told me about what he had been up to.He became a production manager,and while he wasn't rich he seemed so happy.He married and she was going to have a baby,he was filled with joy."

"He said to me,"I never thanked you back then.I wouldn't be where I am now without you,so thank you.Thank you so much."And that was that.I haven't seen him since,but every day I think about how that encounter changed my life."

"I wanted to help other people feel fulfilled like him.I wanted to guide young people into a career they could be happy with.So I used my untouched degree to become a college professor at a local university."

"When I was thirty one,I collapsed in the middle of a lecture.I had been going through treatment for the past few years,but nothing was really working.I don't know if you know this,but pancreatic cancer is one of the most deadly cancers,even in stage two.So they put me in Ward 13,and I have been unable to leave ever since.Thankfully with the money I had saved,along with the inheritance Zexion's parents left behind,he has been able to live in comfort."

"Though I could not raise him from a hospital,we came as close to it as possible.He came here every day after school,slept here most nights.I taught the boy science and helped him with other school work,the teacher in me perhaps."Vexen smiled wearily,as if all the talking was wearing him down.

"He applied to Harvard.He placed top of his class,scored incredibly high on his aptitude test...he wanted to become a doctor...so he could find a way to help me."Vexen's voice wavered the tiniest bit."The boy could never really make friends,but one day he didn't come to visit me.I wasn't too worried,but the next day Zexion came here...and he was crying...telling me he was so sorry,asking me to forgive him..."

Vexen needed a moment to compose himself,and Sora didn't try to rush him.

"The child...some students from his school had asked him to go out drinking to celebrate their graduation.This is normal for kids,but Zexion had never gone out drinking in his life.He got drunk,and couldn't remember what he had done that night,but from what I could wager he knew he had done some pretty bad things.I told him,"You made one mistake,it'll be ok"......"

There were tears in the old mans eyes."Zexion's father,my brother,was a heavy drinker...he might have even been drinking the night he and his wife died....but I forgot,I forgot and I told the boy there was nothing to be afraid of...."

"How often do you think it actually happens?People say your chances of developing brain cancer increase dramatically after the first cigarette.That means that sometimes,after a young,naive kid smokes one cigarette he could develope a life threatening disease.What about with drinking?How bad did your fathers kidney history have to be in order to increase your chances,how many cans of beer would give you kidney cancer?How many children do you think are like Zexion?Who are good all their life,then make one mistake and ruin their lives?"

Sora couldn't answer...there was no answer...

Vexen,tears streaming freely down his face at that point,was exhausted.He laid back his head and closed his eyes,to try and escape to a dreamless sleep.

Sora pulled the covers over the old man and left the room,to hear a sniffling on the floor.Crouched next to the door,where he'd be able to hear everything, was little Zexion,and though he was older than Sora,he couldn't help but think of him as the child Vexen had described him as.

"I'm sorry."Was all Sora could think of to say.

 

 

"So you'd still smoke even though you're dying of lung cancer?"Naminé asked Axel incredulously.Xion was smiling a bit,at watching her friends talk.Sora thought she had to be related to Kairi in some way,even though he knew it was impossible.

"I mean,I'm already dying,might as well do something I love while I'm at it."Axel shrugged."Course if I was cured,that's another story."

"Hey Sora,you won't let Axel sneak any cigarettes in here right?"Naminé asked.

Sora nodded,trying to smile even though there was a million thoughts racing through his head."It's my job to keep you guys from doing stupid shit."

"Like Kings Game?"Roxas suggested.

"Shut up!"Axel patted Sora on the back."That was the first time in two years I didn't want to break out of this place for five minutes."

"What is so important out there anyway?"Naminé asked.

"Penguins for one thing."Axel nodded.

Roxas and Naminé groaned,even Xion gave him an exasperated sigh.

"I don't get that man."Sora shook his head."A world of things,and you choose penguins."

"Their faces are so huggable!And their feathers are as if someone decided 'Hey,this bird ain't cute enough,lets add more of the fluffy shit on there!'"Axel stated with absolutely no shame.

"And besides its not as if thats all I want to do."he added.

Roxas gave Axel an incredulous look,as if the thought had never occurred to him that his best friend had more to wish for than fluffy aquatic birds."What else do you want to do?"

"Well first of all,I don't want to die a virgin."

"You're a virgin?"Naminé asked.

"Nope."

"Sure."Roxas rolled his eyes.

"I also want to go to a planetarium.See the stars and shit."

Sora nodded."That sounds nice."

"And I want to go to the beach and surf a huge wave."

"You copied mine!"Roxas whined.

Axel shook his head.

"I want to see a sunset..."A tiny voice came from the bed.Everyone turned in shock to see that Xion had said it.

"Yeah that sounds great!Tell you what,tonight we'll take you to Luxord's room,it's got the best view,and we'll all watch the shit out of that sunset!"Axel was the first to recover and gave the suggestion.

"I don't know,would that be ok?"Roxas looked apprehensive,and Sora felt a tiny nervousness inside him.

"It's just for ten minutes!"Axel insisted."And besides,she wants to do this in case she dies!Who are we to deny her that?"

No one knew what to say to him.

"I...want to do th...that..."Xion managed to whisper the last part as her voice gave out.She looked so tired.

"Well,if Xion wants to do it,we'll do it."Naminé decided.Roxas nodded in agreement.

_This doesn't seem like a very good idea...But look at her.She's dying anyway,she might as well do something she likes instead of being stuck in this bed._

"Then I'll come too."Sora said.

Three pairs of eyes turned to him.

Sora shrugged and looked down at his feet."If I'm not here,the other nurses will see and stop you.Also,I think we should get everyone to do it."

No one spoke for a whole.For a second,Sora thought he'd overstepped some sort of boundary.But then Axel and Roxas grinned.

"There we go!"

"You're one of us now Sora!"

Then the two started that chant they used a few weeks earlier."Ward 13,the place where they put the fuck ups, society's dumpster for the ones who assed away their entire lives with stupid shit, where the nobodies go!"

 _Yeah,I guess I do kind of fit in with these guys._ "But there's something I need to get,so I'll come back about an hour after my shift here ends."

 

 

When Sora was younger and less confused,he Riku and Kairi would meet outside an ice cream shop in Traverse Town to get the best ice cream in the world.One would think that sweet and salty things wouldn't work together,but in Sora's opinion sweet and salty things were an untapped market.They'd go every week with what little pocket change they had left after a long week,and until the day Sora said what he had said they went without fail.

He hadn't gone without them,and he hadn't even thought of going now that they were dead.

But these guys deserve it.Sora nodded to himself,thinking of Vexen,Zexion,Roxas,Axel and Xion.

 

 

It was four o'clock,so Tinker Bell wasn't expecting him to be there,but when Sora volunteered to watch the patients for the night she looked happy enough to cry.

Since Sora was there,no nurses would be in Ward 13.

No one would see what they were going to do.

_I won't regret this.I know I won't._

Apparently news of watching the sunset in Luxord's room had travelled fast,and everyone was visibly in a better mood for it.Even Luxord looked delighted in the thought of having so many people in his usually lonely room.

Demyx was waiting on the bench in the hall for Sora,holding what looked like a guitar with a very long neck.

"Yo!You're back!I thought for sure you'd ditch us!"

"What is that thing?"Sora gestured to the instrument.

Demyx drew himself up and strummed a loud,minor chord."This my friend,is a sitar,possibly the greatest instrument in the universe!"

"You mean the most annoying."Xemnas mumbled.He and Saïx walked towards Sora."You are permitting Xion to leave her bed?"

"Yes."Sora swallowed nervously.

Saïx looked mildly displeased,however Xemnas spared him an approving glance.

"Hey is he back?"Axels loud voice vibrated down the hall.He poked his fiery head out of Xion's room,grinning once he saw Sora.

"You get what you need?"He asked,practically skipping down the hall. _He's excited._

"Yep."Sora could feel the ice packs he had bought (to keep them from melting of course) freezing his hand,but he was too pumped for what was to come.

"AXEEEEEEEEEL!!!!!!!!"

"Oops."

Larxene was standing outside of Marluxias room,her eyes filled with malice.

"WHY WAS YOUR STUPID MAGAZINE IN MARLUXIA'S ROOM?!?!?!"She charged at the red head,and somehow he managed to smirk at her horrifying countenance.

"I thought flower boy could appreciate what was in it."He bolted down the hall to his room and locked the door before she could get in."

"YOUR'E DISGUSTING!!!!"She kicked at the door.

"What is...?"Sora trailed off,but he couldn't quite verbalized all the questions he had.

"Axel left his porn in Marluxia's room to make her think he's gay again."Saïx rubbed the bridge of his nose exasperatedly,though if Sora wasn't mistaken,he could've sworn he saw a bit of amusement in his normally stoic eyes.

"What?"Sora blinked.

"Axel is gay."Roxas explained."And he likes to tease Larxene by leaving his mags in there."

"Honestly though with how infatuated she is with Marluxia,I doubt it would matter to her very much if he was gay."Xemnas shook his head.

"Oh...I...see..."Though Sora really didn't quite understand.

 

 

When it was late enough,Roxas ,Axel and Sora all gathered into Xion's room,and started taking the tubes out of her chest.

"We'll keep the oxygen mask on though,since we can wheel her tank around."Axel scooped up the girl,whose eyes were glittering with excitement,and took her into the hallway while Roxas wheeled the oxygen tank behind them.Her head bobbed limply, despite Axel's attempts at being gentle.

Everyone was already in the card players room.For once the white blinds were rolled up,the Suns golden rays spilling into the room.Xigbar was wearing a peaceful smile for once,as opposed to his sarcastic grin.Saïx looked somewhat at peace too.

Everyone allowed Xion to sit in front,where she could get the best view.Roxas had to support her body, her tinier frame resting against his slightly broader one to keep her from falling.( _She can't even sit up on her own..._ )

She was smiling wider than Sora had ever seen her,the light from the sun reflecting off her big blue eyes.

"Wow..."She whispered.

Sora stopped staring,and found himself mesmerized by the Sun as well.The golden ball was sitting just above the roof of the opposite wing of the hospital.There were no trees to obscure it,it just cast its rays across the courtyard,where a few of the patients were being wheeled around by family members.

It was the nicest sunset Sora could remember.

_I can't remember the last time I just sat back and watched the sun set._

"This is...nice."Xaldin smiled.There were nods and 'yeahs' in agreement.

"But it could get better."Sora dug into his bag and pulled out fourteen bars of sea salt ice cream,each one concealed by a white wrapper that was covered in a light mist of condensation.

"That's...!"Demyx grabbed one of the bars out of Sora's hand and peeled it open."ICE CREAM!!!"

"Holy shit really?!"Roxas grabbed one too,peeled it open,and took a bite.

"Holy fuck."A large grin spread on Roxas' face.

The bars were dispersed and everyone agreed that,after what could have been years of eating nothing but shitty hospital food,it was the best ice cream ever.

"It must have been pretty expensive to buy all this ice cream on a students wallet."Vexen was eating his slowly,as if to savor it. 

"It's pretty cheap,and I work part time in a textile shop,so it's fine."

"A toast to Sora."Lexaeus raised his ice cream,and everyone did the same."For a little bite of heaven."

"Lord knows I'll never make it there."Axel muttered loud enough for everyone to hear,causing a bit of laughter to fly about the room."To Sora."

"To Sora!"

Roxas,who had long since finished his bar,was helping Xion eat hers.She took tiny wavering licks,small "mm," sounds indicating that she liked it too.Everyone had finished their ice cream,or was idly licking the stick,watching the sun sink down below the building.

 

 

Sora was exhausted when he got home,but more lighthearted than he had been in almost a year.His parents were already finishing dinner,and when they asked him where he had been,Sora lied that he had been practicing for an upcoming interview with a college headmaster.They looked so proud,Sora almost felt guilty for lying.

_Nope.No interviews,no applications .... nothing....._

Sora's thoughts couldn't help but drift to Vexen and Zexion.

**_"I didn't know what I wanted."_ **

_If Vexen had never gone to college he wouldn't have had anything to do once Zexion came to him...he didn't have a clear picture,but he still did it...._

_Fuck it..._

Sora pulled out his laptop and went to the home page of a local community college.Nothing too accredited,but it had something for everyone.He filled out the application,copy and pasted his transcripts,which were supposed to always be saved,and looked at the essay question.

**What is your reason for applying to college?A family member?An experience?**

Sora blanked for a moment,but then he knew exactly what to write,as if it were already prewritten in his head.

_In my school,there is always a volunteer spot for Radiant Garden Hospital..._

 

 

He got to Ward 13 same time as usual,but that morning it seemed like everyone was still asleep,whereas there are usually a few early birds.

I guess their treatment tuckered them out this week.Sora began his rounds,taking the medication to the necessary rooms.

It wasn't until he got to Axel's room that he realized something was very wrong.

The red head was always either hanging out with Roxas (and Xion when occasion permitted) or sleeping.When Sora got to his room however,he was just curled up in his covers,staring blankly at the wall.

"Axel?Whats wrong?"Sora felt a chill run down his spine.For once,the red head looked as sickly as he actually was.

"She's gone.They both are."

_Huh?_

"Xion died on Tuesday.Roxas ran away the day after."Axels voice was hoarse,but Sora couldn't for the life of him picture him crying.

_...what?_

"But...but Xion was ok on Saturday...we hooked her back up,she wasn't out of bed for more than twenty minutes..."

_The voice like a bird._

_Her tinkling laugh._

_Her infinite eyes._

"They said her body was too weak now...it was a long time coming."Axel buried his head under his cover.

"And....and Roxas!He wouldn't just leave!"Sora insisted,disbelief and denial going through his head at lightning speed.

"....."Axel mumbled something,but Sora couldn't hear him anymore.

Sora turned out of his room and hurried to Roxas' room.

_He'll be in there.He'll be in there with some sort of prank and Axel will come in from behind laughing,then we'll go visit Xion again,maybe I can get them more ice-_

All thought ground to a halt when Sora got to Roxas' room.The sheets were peeled back,the pillows still squished from when they were last slept on.

With no other choice or path,Sora ran into Xion's across the hall.

...her bed was cleared of its sheets,there were no pillows on it,the machines were gone and the bed empty.On the bedside table were a few white roses laid on one side.

_Marluxia must have brought those._

Sora could do nothing but sit on the bare mattress and gaze around the room numbly.

"She was fine...she was just fine last week...she was happy...."Sora muttered to himself.

_This isn't some playground...I forgot about why I hate this hospital..._

_And I have another month of this..._

 

 

The day dragged on almost painfully slow.While Xion's death didn't affect the other patients like it did Axel (and evidently Roxas) but without the two boisterous guys the Ward seemed very quiet.

"Up for a game of cards?"Luxord asked Xaldin.The older man harrumphed,but begrudgingly sat down on the bench with him.

"Marluxia."Sora called to the man as he was heading back to his room from the bathroom.He stopped and spared a glance for the boy."You left those flowers for Xion,right?"

The pink haired man nodded solemnly,then turned to go back to his room.

"Don't expect too much conversation from that guy kid."Xigbar sauntered up from behind Sora and leaned against the blue walls."He's never dealt with death too well."

"You apparently have no problems with a young girl dying."Sora commented.

Xigbar huffed a laugh."Kid,I'm glad she's dead.Better than what she was going through here."

Sora shook his head."She was too young!She didn't have a chance to live a real life!"

"You kidding?"Xigbar shoved Sora so hard,he started to doubt the mans sobriety."You gave that girl one happy day out of years of pain.For one day,she was happy.For one day,she was free.You did more for her than this hospital ever did.Thats probably why Roxas left."

"But why would he just leave Axel?He just lost a good friend, and then Roxas just leaves him?"Sora couldn't help unloading it on the drunkard,he seemed to be the only one who wasn't disturbed by the events of the past week.

"Roxas will be back.He knows if he doesn't come back for treatment,he'll die quicker.And that's all any of us have in here...time..."

 

 

"So how are we gonna do this?"Zexion asked.His grey eyes were wide in what could have been anticipation,but was more than likely fear.

Most of the patients were standing in their doorways.Vexen was too tired for it,Saïx didn't want to be bothered,and Axel was still in his room.

"Easy."Sora had finished waxing the floor and immediately put on an extra pair of slippers that were intended for the patients.The entire process was more rigorous than he thought it would be,but it was going to be worth it.

"You just have to...kick off!"Sora slid a few feet down the hall and spun to a stop.

_I haven't done this since I was nine._

Demyx was the first to join in.He kicked off with a flourish and went into a cart with supplies.His laughter was enough to spur the others into joining.Larxene held on to Marluxias sleeve,as she had been feeling nauseous that morning and didn't want to fall.Luxord started out confidently enough,but almost immediately ran into Xigbar,who was almost as incapacitated on a waxy floor as he was on booze.Zexion was gaining momentum,but was unsure of how to stop without killing himself.Xaldin was trying to slide without knocking into anyone,but considering he and Lexaeus were two very big men,they collided constantly,not that they didn't find it semi-amusing.Xemnas,in an attempt to not look stupid,tried to slide as slowly as possible.However this only made him look like a very large,very clumsy child.

The hall was filled with the sound of laughing adults,people who probably hadn't done such an activity in years.

 _This is what I can do...I can't cure these guys,so I can at least make things a little less dull around here._ There wasn't much debate over it for Sora anymore.What had started as a non optional job to graduate had turned into something that actually made Sora feel like he was doing something important.He had grown to care about these people,even Larxene...somehow...

_So where the hell is Roxas?_

 

 

"Still upset?"Xigbar asked Sora once everyone became too exhausted.Sora helped them into bed and gave them their medication,but Xigbar had insisted he was fine.

"Of course."Sora nodded."But what else can I do?I'm not going to get over it,I'm just gonna do what I can."

Xigbar nodded."Why don't you think of something less physical next time?Vexen and Zexion haven't been as spry as usual."At the look of fear on Sora's face Xigbar barked a laugh."These periods come and go kid.Get used to 'em..."A flash of realization ran across Xigbars one eye."Oh yeah,you're leaving in a month,aren't you."

"...that's when the volunteer period ends,but..."

"Ahhhhh?Buuuut?"He goaded.

"...I've been thinking of signing up for an internship.I could stay in this Ward,learn how to take care of you guys..."Sora had only looked up the internship spot a dozen times in the past week to make sure no one took it,but the sooner he finished his volunteering,the sooner he could get the paper work in.

"I see."Xigbar turned and slid back into his room."Well,I know that would make everyone here pretty happy."

 

"Sora?Hey, Sora!"

Sora woke up with a start to his coworker Pence shaking him.

It was the usual slow Wednesday,not many people came in during the week,but hump day was always empty.Usually Sora played on his phone,or tried to make small talk with Pence,but he stayed up late the previous night researching different cancers and the stages. 

"Sorry,sorry,did we get any customers?"Sora sat up.

"No,but you're getting a phone call."Pence had Sora's phone in his hand,which was vibrating.

Grabbing the smart phone,he slid the green icon across the screen and put it to his ear."Hello?"

"Sora,if you've got the time get over here!"

"Axel?Whats happening?"

"They're giving me permission to leave for today,I'm gonna look for Roxas!"

"What?Seriously?!"

"So come on!I have no idea where anything is in this city!"

"Ok,I'll see you in a bit."Sora hung up and looked at Pence,who was watching him slyly.

"Got somewhere to be?"

Sora tried his best puppy dog eyes,but he knew they stopped working when he turned thirteen."It's important."

Pence nodded."And this isn't.Go on."

"Thanks!"

 

 

"Sora!"Axel was standing outside the gates to the hospital,a familiar grin on his face.Instead of his usual white hospital robe, he was wearing a red trench coat in the cold weather,and some faded jeans,along with a pair of black hiking boots.

"Axel!" _It's weird seeing him outside the hospital._ "Feeling good today?"

"You know it!"Axel shook Sora's hand warmly."So I know a few places he could be,is there a beach anywhere in this shit hole city?"

"How can you call it a shit hole when you haven't seen it yet?"

"When you prove to me it isn't a shit hole,now let's go!"Axel started pushing Sora down the street.

 

 

"WOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!"Axel yelled down the side of the beach,hearing it echo back at him.

"First time seeing a beach in,how long?"Sora asked.

"Five years!"Axel groaned and flipped off his black boots.He started digging his long feet in the whispy sand.

It wasn't too chilly out,but still not the type of day for beach stuff.Therefor there was no one else on the beach.

"You sure this was the closest beach?"Axel asked."It sure took a while to get here."

"Yeah,it was either this or somewhere in New Jersey,but then you'd have to deal with all the hotels and shit."

The two were currently on a beach in Rhode Island.Due to Axel's eagerness to get started,and to also see a beach, they ended up on a coast not too far from where the train let them off.There were a few looming buildings,but there was a long stretch of sand,therefore it was good enough for Axel.

"Roxaaaas!"Axel started down the beach bare foot,calling for Roxas."Get your pale ass over here you little bitch!"

"Yeah,cause that will make him want to come to us."Despite Sora's words,he was grinning,and he started after the taller guy.

 

It was a few hours,and soon Axel would have to make it back for curfew.They needed to take the next train at 3:00 in order to make it back for 7:00.

Axel was,understandably,in a bad mood.His first good day in years and he had to spend it looking around for someone who didn't want to be found.

That would have been the case,had Sora not planned accordingly.

"Well thanks for taking me out here.I promise I'll reimburse you for the train tickets."Axel put his boots back on,sand still sticking to the bottoms of his feet.

"Wait a second."Sora gestured to a boardwalk,where a few events were going on.It being April,there weren't many,but there was one thing that Sora knew he had to show Axel."There's a traveling zoo here today.Comes around once a week for the younger kids."

Axels face went from confusion,to realization,to excitement paramount to what most children would feel if they just found out they're getting a puppy.

"And it's...today?!"Axel asked,practically vibrating.

"No,tomorrow of course it's today you fuckwad!"

 

 

There was only one exhibit they knew they had time for.The moment they paid for their tickets,Axel sprinted past the gate to where he was heading.

"Axel not so fast!"

"PENGUIIIIIIINS!!!!"

_Axel found the Penguins._

There was a medium sized exhibit with some tiny glaciers.A few rock hopper penguins were hopping about on it,their beaks moving rapidly from one onlooker to another.

Axel was gazing at them with what can only be called absolute happiness."Look at the little shits!"

"Look at the baby one."Sora was honestly more entertained with the little sounds Axel was making,indicating he found the little shits as adorable as he thought they'd be.

"AaaaaaAAAWWWW!!!"Some parents with their children were looking at Axel like he was a freak, _Which he totally is,_ Sora thought.

Taking a quick glance at his phone Sora noticed it was already 2:50.

"...Axel!"

"Yeah?"He took a break from admiring the flightless birds.

"We gotta haul ass!!"

 

The two were panting frantically as they raced to the train station before it left.

"It's...that one!"Sora pointed to gate ten.

Axel could only gasp in response.

They ran past the stile and passed their tickets to the lady out front before the clock struck three and the doors were closed.

Sora was leaning against a handrail panting while Axel tried to catch his breath on the floor,so he wouldn't fly when the train started.

"I've...never run...that fast..."Sora wheezed.Axel was coughing a little."We almost...didn't....make it..."

The train groaned under them and Sora stood up straight,Axel however rolled along the floor,still wheezing.

"You good?"Sora asked,watching his friend sprawled across the floor of the train.

Axel couldn't answer him.His panting was only getting worse,not better,and he coughed violently when he tried answering...

"Axel are you ok?Whats wrong?!"Sora's heart was beating a mile a minute. _What the hell can I do?!I thought he was ok today!_

"Can't....FUCK..."Axel choked,gasping desperately trying to get oxygen into him.He started gesturing to his chest,and made a shaky whacking motion.

"There's something stuck in your chest?!"

Axel nodded vigorously.His face was purple.

Sora started whacking Axel on the back as hard as he possibly could.If he wasn't so worried about seeing him die,he'd be more gentle,but he was acting on pure adrenaline,unable to think about how much his back would hurt in the morning.Axel sounded like he was in horrible pain, and all Sora could imagine was the pain of suffocating.It made his whacking more frantic.

"Sor.....!"Axel was trying to call for help,say something,but could only cough harder.

"Come on!"Sora was gathering a crowd now,some woman had her phone out and was calling an ambulance."Come on Axel!"

After one particularly hard whack,Axel seized up and started gagging on the floor.He coughed up some sort of slimy, bloody ball.A few of the onlookers looked away in disgust.

"Axel,can you breathe?!Are you alright?!"Sora gripped Axels shoulders,only realizing then how bony the man really was.

Axel was taking giant breaths,trying to drink in as much air as possible.He grabbed Sora's hand on his shoulder and squeezed so hard Sora almost pulled away,but he kept hanging on.

He had managed to calm down his breathing,and was laying passed out on the wooden floor.Some of the onlookers still wanted to get him checked by a doctor,but Sora insisted he would be fine.One of the passengers helped Sora get him into a seat and buckled in.

About ten minutes on the train,Axel began to stir again."Huh...?Sora?"

Sora didn't say anything.All he could do was scowl at Axel.

"Why are you looking at me like that man?"

"...you lied Axel."

"Huh?"

"You weren't really allowed to leave the hospital today,were you?"

Axel turned his head to look out the window.

Sora allowed himself a few tears."Axel...why did you do this?"

"....I wanted to see Roxas..."

Sora swallowed,his throat felt like sandpaper,but he didn't interrupt.

"He was...the only one I liked...he made me feel...alive again..."

There were more tears in Sora's eyes,but he refused to let them slide down his cheeks.

"It's funny."Axel turned back towards Sora,his bright green eyes filled with amusement."You...make me feel the same way..."

Sora couldn't help it.The tears were flowing freely,and there was nothing anyone could have done about it.

 

Sneaking Axel back into the hospital was no mean feat.The man had apparently snuck out after roll call,and Saïx was covering for him.

"Saïx is?"Sora asked when told this." **Our** Saïx?"

Axel huffed."Yeah well,he owes me a favor."

But there were more people around the hospital.In ten minutes, a nurse would be looking for him and wouldn't take any of Saïx's excuses,so the clock was ticking.

"Use your coat to cover your hair.I'll talk to Tinker Bell for a bit while you sneak into the bathroom.Then,I'll grab you a robe and we can pretend you tried to run for it."

With this plan in mind,the two got ready.Sora entered before Axel and got himself ready,only to notice no one was at the desk.

_Where's Tinker Bell?_

"Hey!What's the hold up?"Axel whispered from the doorway,but once he saw the coast was clear he walked in."Where is everybody?"

"Don't know,don't care.Grab an extra robe and get in the bathroom."

Axel gave a one-armed salute and walked past the desk leisurely.

Sora took the familiar route to Ward 13,noticing that the nursing staff seemed to be normal.Doctors and nurses were casually dealing with patients in wheel chairs or were fiddling with supplies.

But when Sora got to Ward 13 he noticed a huge increase.Nurses were going in one of the rooms,none coming out.

 _That's Vexen's room!_ Sora noticed little Eeyore trying to look inside to room,but two nurses were preventing him.

"But he needs me!I have to be with him!"Zexion was trying to shove the two men aside,unfortunately he lacked the muscle to do so.

"Sir,you need to understand that right now you would only get in our way."One of them said."Please let us do our job."

"You need to get back to bed 006."The second nurse said."You're supposed to be taking your IV at this hour."

"Hey what's happening?"Sora asked.

"Sora!"Zexion turned his pleading eyes to the boy."Tell them to let me in!Please!He's gotten worse!"

"He's his nephew!"Sora implored."His only family,you can make the exception right?"

"Sorry, but 004 needs our full attention and 006 needs to get hooked back up."The other nurse gently grabbed Zexions wrist to lead him away."You will be the first to know if anything changes."

"Let go!"Zexion tried to pull away,but the nurses grip was too strong.

"Knock it off!"Sora grabbed the arm that was holding Zexion and yanked,but the other nurse grabbed him."

"Sir you need to leave now!"

"Stop!"Zexion screeched.

"What's with all the yelling?!"A familiar voice growled from the double doors.The four men turned,to see Tinker Bell in all her divine wrath.She had Axel by the ear and looked ready to kill anyone who dared defy her.

"Miss Wells..."The two nurses nodded to her.

"I ask you two two to make sure everyone gets their IV and what do I find?"She shakes Axel a little,who winced at being yanked."A patient attempting to escape!"

_Thank god Axel was able to change quick enough._

"I was under the impression that patient 008 was undergoing immunotherapy."

"He is not scheduled for immunotherapy until Friday!"Tinker Bell was turning red with rage.Sora could feel a tiny bit of respect for her,yet it was completely overshadowed by terror.

Even the nurses seemed frightened."N-no he is not.It was on the schedule that-"

"What schedule?!"Her voice was almost as loud as the four men had been.

One of the nurses pulled a folded sheet of paper out of his white pocket and unfolded it.With shaking hands he gave it to the fairy receptionist.

Tinker Bell Nell looked at it for five seconds before growling."Where did you get this thing?!This schedule is complete garbage!"

_Is Saïx responsible for this?How'd he manage that?!_

"Get him into bed!"She thrust Axel towards the nurse.He stumbled and practically fell into their arms.They helped him up and took him back to his room.

"And you..."Tinker Bell turned her gaze towards Zexion,and even though she wasn't angry anymore the slate haired man cowered under it."You need to go back to bed."

"B-But-"Zexion tried.

"No buts."Tink looked at him sadly."I'm sorry Zexion,but this is for the best.He will be fine."Tink turned on her heel and left through the double doors.

Zexions shoulders slumped.

"She's right you know."Sora patted the guy on the shoulder."He'll be fine.I'll be back Saturday,and by then you should be able to see him."

Zexion didn't say anything,he just let Sora lead him back to his bed where he had to have an IV shoved back into his arm.


	2. Easter for Eeyore

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So sorry I took so long to update, I had writers block, and I'm also a senior, so a lot of shit has been going down /(>.<)\
> 
> Please enjoy, this is a little shorter than the last one, but I'm confidant in it's quality.
> 
> How long will this be?
> 
> I don't fucking know! "\/(^-^)\/"

"Happy Easter Sora."Tinker Bell greeted Sora as he strolled into the lobby,past the main desk.

"Happy Easter Ti-Miss Wells."Sora caught himself. _I don't think she'd very much appreciate that nickname._

It was the day before Easter,however considering no one would be at the hospital on Easter meant there was no better time to say it.

The straps of the bags were digging into his palms,but he was too focused to care.The moment the double doors closed behind him, Sora made a dash towards Vexen's room.

_...oh man..._

The old man was barely visible beneath all the tubes sticking out of him.The tubes that went into his neck, his nose, under his robe, connected to different packs with various liquids dripping out, or in to them.Three machines,all whirring and humming with some sort of purpose were connected to his chest.His body itself seemed to have crumpled further into itself, Sora didn't think that it was possible for the man to look thinner than he already had.

A bony hand was being held by Zexion,who looked like he hadn't slept in days.His slate hair was matted to his forehead with sweat.

"Hey Zexion."Sora walked up to him carefully,the sound of heavy bag shifting behind him.

"...Hi Sora."Zexion gave him a small smile,but he quickly fell back into his original grave countenance.

"Has he been awake at all?"

"A little bit on Thursday.But he needs his sleep."

"...I wish I could've visited."

And it was true.But life didn't pause for Sora,school,work,and family matters piled on top of him, one after the other, until he barely had time to sleep.

Zexion nodded."I know.But you're here now,which is enough."

Sora took an empty seat beside Zexion and rummaged through one of the bags until he found what he was looking for.

"Happy Easter."Sora handed Zexion two books."They were for you and him,but you should take them until he gets better."

One of the books was leather bound and had glittery gold lettering on the cover.

_**Medicine Through the Ages,and the Various Practices** _

Zexion eyed that book with obvious hunger.

The second book was not nearly so elegant,but it was twice as thick.It's paper back cover was ripped in a few places,and clear tape ran down the spine.There was a young boy in a blue shirt on the cover,and various odd creatures surrounding him.In red lettering on the top was, _**"Brave Story:By Miyuki Miyabe"**_

" **"Brave Story"**?"Zexion gazed at the cover curiously.

Sora nodded."It's supposed to be about a kid,but it's a pretty mature book.It's actually my favorite."

Zexion flipped the cover open to read the synopsis.His blue eyes flicked from one side to the other with frightening haste.

"It's an adventure story,so I wanted you guys to read it."Sora stood up,taking his bags with him."Hope you enjoy."

"Wait Sora!"Zexion stood up and ran out of the room,returning very quickly with something in his hand."Hold out your palm."

Reluctantly,Sora did as he asked.He felt something small and metallic fall into his hand.

It was a circular silver knob,only about an inch in diameter,the warm metal sat heavy in his palm.There was a flower design carved into it,age had tarnished some of the inner grooves to an almost black sheen.

"It's the only thing I took from home when I had to be admitted here.The dresser was my mothers,but I obviously couldn't take the whole thing,so I grabbed that."Zexion took his place beside his uncle again.

"I can't take something that important."Sora insisted.

"It's fine."Zexion shrugged."I wanted to give it to you,and I asked uncle and he agreed,it should go to someone who isn't trapped here."

"...thank you very much Zexion."

"...thanks for the books."Zexion opened the cover to **"Brave Story"** and began to read."Happy Easter."

 

"S'up Sora."Axel waved from his bed.Due to his excursion on Wednesday,he was too weak to leave bed.But that didn't affect his enthusiasm at all.

"Happy Easter Axel."Sora sat down beside his bed.

"You celebrate Easter?"

Sora nodded."I'm not Catholic,or Christian or whatever,but it's tradition."

Axel nodded."My tradition is that every Easter I get in my van,drive to the nearest strip joint,and hide from all the church-attending bastards."

"Didn't know there were many gay strip clubs in New York."Sora shrugged.

"...you blind?"Axel laughed,but it was quick and sharp."Anyways it's not like I go there for the entertainment.You just don't have to deal with the religious shit in a place like a strip club."Axel paused."...wellll..."

 _Time to change the subject._ "When was the last time you did that?"

"Three years ago,before I was admitted."

"So,it's alright if I do something a little different?'Sora took something soft and fluffy out of his bag.

The baby penguin was about as big as a cat,and a million times fluffier.Since it was a baby it didn't have black feathers yet, instead it's blue marble eyes looked up from a sea of grey plush.Axel's eyes lit up the moment he saw it.

"Aw man you didn't have to do that."Axel took the penguin and stared at it,almost in awe.

"Yeah,but I wanted to."Sora tried not to laugh. _It still amazes me that a twenty-five year old man could get so excited about something as innocent and childlike as an animal.And a penguin at that._

Axel smiled a bit."Well damn it!"He shoved his covers off and shakily got to his feet."Now I wanna give you something!"

"I don't want any of your mags."Sora shook his head vigorously.

"No way I'm not that cruel."Axel dug around under his bed,some blankets and a sock flying out in his search.

"Ah!"He finally found what he was looking for.He lifted up a large flat album case,the lettering faded.There were three rows of white graves lined up endlessly on the cover.

"Metallica?"Sora asked,reading the old letters on the top.

"Master of Puppets!"Axel declared."Their greatest album ever,and the greatest album ever made!"

"You like heavy metal?"

"Let's put it this way."Axel sat on his bed."If this album were a woman,I would pay to travel a million miles just to suck the dick of the guy that fucked her."

"...nice."Sora tried to get the image out of his head.

"And that's nothing to say of what I would do for the girl herself-"Axel started but Sora stopped him.

"I think I get it." _I'm not old enough to hear this._ "But if this album is so important to you,why are you giving it to me?"

"Cause I have no way of listening to it here,and I want to educate you on the finer aspects of music,which you have been so horribly deprived of."Axel swung his long legs back on the bed."Happy Easter!"He smiled and hugged the cuddly penguin to his chest.

 

"You don't need to..."Saïx apparently couldn't say any more,because he just stared at Sora.

Sora just finished setting up an easel with a blank canvas sitting on it.Five charcoal pencils of varying color sat on the edge.

"I didn't realize you and Axel knew each other,you know, before getting admitted here."

Saïx said nothing.

"I wanted to get you something as a thanks for covering for Axel the other day.I mentioned it to him, and he told me you used to be an artist."

Saïx was speechless.

"So that's why you helped him.He's your friend." _I hadn't realized it, Saïx acts so cold to Axel...but then again he pretty much treats everyone the same way, so it's probably just his personality._

Saïx glared up a Sora."I owed him.That's all."

Sora didn't push the issue.

 

 

"Sora I'm in love with you!"Demyx was weeping at Sora's feet,though Sora knew by that point they were probably fake tears.

The tiny analog radio didn't get too many stations,and it sounded pretty staticy,but it was the best Sora could afford and it got some music stations.To find them it would take about ten minutes of sifting through B-Grade radio shows, but it was the thought that counts.

"Sorry you can't see an actual concert,but maybe you can find some stuff you like."

"SORRRRAAAAAAAA!!!"Demyx might have been crying real tears then,but Sora couldn't tell.

 

 

"Hey kid,you make any headway on that internship?"Xigbar asked Sora while he was cleaning the toilet in the girls room.Larxene's medication was upsetting her stomach,so she had made three impromptu trips to the bathroom in the past two hours.She only actually managed to make it to the toilet in time once.

"No,but it hasn't been taken yet."Sora rubbed his forehead with his upper arm."As long as it stays that way,I'll be good to go."

Sora walked out of the stall and started to wash his hands in the sink,trying to forget what he had just been doing a minute ago.

"What's with the bags?"The one eyed man asked.

Sora dried his hands with the paper towel and grabbed the bags,which were leaning against the wall of the bathroom."Some stuff.Thought I'd get you guys a little something for the holiday,but I didn't know what you'd want."

"Booze?"The pirate offered helpfully.

"No."Sora deadpanned, to which Xigbar chuckled at.

Sora pulled out a small disposable camera and handed it to Xigbar.It was cheap and made of the same stuff most toys are made with, but there was a flash and a Kodak logo on the side, therefor making it reliable.

"What's with this?"he asked.

Sora shrugged."You said watching the sunset with everyone was nice,but I never took a picture of it.I wish I had.So why don't you take picture of the good stuff you see here?There's fifty slots in the film,once you use them all,give them to me and I'll get them processed."

Sora left Xigbar in the bathroom,not a word from the older man.

 

 

"Larxene?You awake?"Sora peeked his head in the girls room.

Unsurprisingly Marluxia was sitting with her.They were in the middle of a conversation when Sora entered,so they gave him annoyed stares.

"Yeah,unfortunately."She laid back on her pillows.Her face was swallow,as she hadn't been able to keep anything down at all that day.The two blonde antennae that Sora was accustomed to seeing were hanging limply behind her ears.

"Marluxia,has she eaten lunch?"

"No."Larxene answered,glaring at Sora."And maybe stop treating me like I'm not in the room?"

"Sorry."Sora shrugged."Did you take your medication?"

"Yeah,but I threw up a lot,so chances are it didn't go down right."

"Good,because Tinker Bell wrote you up a new prescription.It'll help with the nausea,but it'll make you drowsier."

Larxene groaned."Because being unconscious the rest of the week wasn't enough."

"I'm sorry,but your body has been rejecting the old prescription as a result of your chemotherapy."Sora left the bag with the pills on her bedside table."So please take them."

"And if I don't want to?"Larxene challenged.

Marluxia gave a tired sigh."I'll make sure she takes them."

"Marluxia,your schedule was changed.On Tuesday you'll need to go to Block 3 for chemotherapy."

Marluxia's eyes widened, his face turned pale."They're putting me on chemotherapy?"

Sora glanced around the room, uncomfortable."Weren't you aware of this?"

"Why would he be?"Larxene asked, her voice took on a nervous edge that made her sound even more annoyed."He has no family to make these decisions for him,so he's basically at the mercy of the doctors here.They're allowed to do anything if they believe it'll cure us."

"But-!" _That just doesn't seem legal!_

"I am unemployed with no way of paying for my treatment."Marluxia recovered from his shock pretty quickly."I have no right."

The news seemed to concern Marluxia,so Sora decided to cut the chatter and pull it out of his bag.

"Marluxia,you like gardening right?"Sora held the tiny pot in the palm of his hand.It was a single green sprout surrounded by rich moist soil.

"What is that?"Marluxia's cold eyes were sparkling slightly.

"It's a paopu tree."Sora explained."Or at least it will be.They take a long time to mature,and they are pretty fragile as sprouts,but once it bears fruit it's supposed to be really good.An old story goes,that if you share the fruit with someone,you two will be together forever."

Sora placed the pot on the table beside Larxene's new medicine.

"You celebrate Easter?"Larxene's usual crass tone was dull.It was the friendliest Sora could remember hearing her.

"Kinda,just figured it would be nice to celebrate with you guys."

"Well...thank you."Marluxia tried to be sincere,but it was obvious that he was uncomfortable receiving something from a kid.

"Yeah...thanks."Larxene mumbled.

 

"Sora."Lexaeus and Xaldin approached Sora.In about an hour he'd have to leave and help his parents with the Easter preparations.

"Yeah guys?"

"Come with us."Xaldin not-so-gently grabbed Sora but the elbow and guided him towards Vexen's room.Lexaeus did similarly to his other elbow, which resulted in what looked like Sora being carried away by two large men.

Inside,everyone was either sitting on the floor or sitting on a clear space of Vexen's bed,except for Axel who was lounging back in a wheelchair. Someone had wheeled him there,and once Sora turned towards the window he saw who.

"Ms. Wells?"Sora asked.

"I thought Axel was trying to make another run for it,but he told me what you did."Tinker Bell looked happier than Sora could remember her being.

"We all wanted to thank you for volunteering to take care of us."Luxord looked delighted at the presence of so many people.

"We've had a lot of fun!"Demyx was grinning,practically vibrating on the floor next to Saïx,who shrugged away from him in disgust.

"You didn't need to show such concern for us,yet you did."Xemnas was wearing a small ghost of a smile,but it was still something."That's something we don't know how to repay."

"But we can try."Larxene interrupted."Get over here brat."

Sora cautiously did as she said,he yelped in surprise when he felt arms reach across his shoulders.

"What are you-?"He started.

"Shut up and say cheese!"Axel clapped his hand over Sora's shoulder.

Sora looked up to see that Xigbar was holding the disposable camera to his one good eye.He was feigning impatience, but Sora couldn't tell whether it was genuine or not.

Sora managed a smile before the flash went off,and once it was over the others started chatting.

"When that camera fills up give me a copy Xigbar."Xaldin asked.

Xigbar clicked his tongue at him."Why didn't I hear a 'please'?You're an adult right?"

"Hang on guys,we still have another surprise for Sora!"Tinker Bell reached under Vexen's bed to retrieve a packet.

"What's that?"Xemnas and the others didn't seem to know about this surprise.

Well,one person did...

"You want something done,gotta do it yourself."Xigbar shrugged.

Sora took the papers from Tinker Bell and read the caption.Almost immediately,his heart stopped.

"Xigbar told me you were interested."Axel and Demyx were trying to get a peek at the papers,but Sora held them out of reach."And I knew your school wouldn't like it if you signed up while still completing your volunteer work,but I figured it'd be no problem if I were to ask you myself."

 _She can't mean..._ Tinker Bell gave Sora a knowing smile.

"Will you please become an intern for our hospital?"

The world stopped rotating.Sora almost couldn't believe his own ears.

"Wh...what?"Zexion asked.

"You're serious?!"Axel tried to stand up,but a harsh glare from the receptionist kept him in his seat.

"You...you need people with medical experience though...right?" _Is this some sort of late April Fools joke?_

Tinker Bell sighed."Sora,in the time I've spent working at this hospital I've noticed two things.One:There's more ways for us to help our patients than just with medicine.And Two:No one in their right minds would choose to stay stuck with these guys."

"Thank you Ms. Wells."Vexen mumbled sarcastically.

"Yeah,really feeling the love."Luxord stroked his goatee.

"My point is-"She interrupted them."-You're the only person I've met who makes an effort for these people,and if you hated it here this much you wouldn't have gotten into so much mischief with this lot."

"As for medical training..."Tinker Bell sat on the edge of Vexen's bed,careful not to sit on his legs."...You've been giving these guys their medication,and as an intern you wouldn't be performing the procedures yourself.You would mainly be taking care of them in between treatments.You can learn a lot about health care by observation,and it's a good way to get colleges to notice you."

"So Sora...what do you say?"

Everyone turned to Sora with hope in their eyes. (except Saïx,who was looking away indifferent to the situation)

_After all the stuff that's gone on here,do I really want to come back everyday?_

_After what happened with Xion...after what happened with Roxas..._

_Not all of these people are going to make it out of this hospital.Any of them could die.Xaldin, Lexaeus...Xemnas, Saïx...Luxord, Larxene, Marluxia...Demyx...Xigbar...Vexen, Zexion, Axel...They could die..._

_..........and if it ever comes to that,I have to be there for them...._

"Ok."Sora finally exhaled the breath he had been holding.

"That's what I thought you'd say."Tinker Bell smiled."Just sign some of the forms and we can make it official as soon as possible."

"You're gonna keep visiting us Sora?"Zexion asked.

"Yep."Sora nodded."Only this time I'll actually be able to help you guys."

"Idiot,you have been helping us!"Larxene gave Sora a noogie.

"Woah,Larxene being nice?"Demyx poked Larxene in the center of her forehead.She slapped his hand away with a huff.

"The world must be ending."Saïx muttered.

Larxene huffed."Yeah!Okay!This is what I get for saying nice things!Fuck you guys!"Larxene marched off,her arms crossed defensively.

"You have to push her buttons like that?"The pink haired gentleman sighed.

"Yes."Demyx and Saïx said together.The two immediately realized their mistake and looked horrified.

"Either way,you're sure about staying?"Luxord asked."You're a high school student,this will take a lot out of your free time."

 _Not like I have any other friends._ "Yeah,I'm sure."

 

 

"Sora,can we talk for a minute?"

Sora's spirits sank the moment he walked through the front door."Sure,just a second."

Sora slid his vans off and stepped into the kitchen,where his mom and dad were sitting at the table looking grim.

"What's up?"Sora asked nonchalantly,though the looks he had received from the two were already causing his heart to thud.

"Sora..."His father started gently,as though worried his son would lash out."What happened to your Easter money from Aunt Tifa?"

_Shit!_

Now obviously it would have been impossible for Sora to afford gifts for the patients with only his allowance and what he made with work,but every year for Easter,his birthday and Christmas,his Aunt Tifa would give him quite the generous check.The money was usually deposited in his bank account,or in rare cases was used for something particularly important.

The fact that all that money just disappeared was not lost on Sora,and he knew his parents would notice.

"I spent it." _No point in lying since they've noticed it's gone._

"On what?"His Mom asked.

"...on some stuff for the patients at the hospital I'm volunteering at..."

The two didn't look particularly shocked, more like they had been expecting it.Still, his father exhaled in relief."Welk at least it's not drugs."

"Cloud!"Sora's Mom slapped him on the arm.

"We were both thinking it!"He defended."But Sora,how could you spend so much on a volunteer job?"

"It's not about that." _Why can't they understand?_ "They're my friends."

Sora's parents shared a look,one Sora didn't like.

"Sora."His mom stood up and put her hands on his shoulders gently."You are such a sweet boy,and you've got a big heart.And I know,that Riku and Kairi's deaths were hard on you..."

"No kid should have to go to their own friends funerals."His dad stayed seated,being the stronger one.

_Stop it._

"But Sora,if by doing this you think you can help Riku or Kairi in any way-"

"Not everything is about them."Sora interrupted her.His fists were clenched at his sides,but he dared not raise his voice.

"Oh Sweetie,you have to realize that what you're doing...it isn't logical."His Mom squeezed his shoulders a little,in what must have been in an attempt to be comforting.But Sora only found it made him want to escape even more.

"Sora..."His dad looked conflicted."You understand that...these people won't be needing these presents for long..."

_...what?_

"What are you saying?"Sora's fists were shaking."That just because they're sick they're not people anymore?"

"No Sora,what your father means is-"

"You think I shouldn't have gotten them anything because they're going to die anyway right?!"Sora shook his mother's hand away.He suddenly couldn't stand to be around her.

"Sora that was a lot of money!"Sora's dad was finally getting up too."And it was supposed to go towards buying your college textbooks, or any emergencies that came up!"

"It was my money and I'll do what I want with it."

"....Sora you've only got three more days of volunteering right?"Aerith tried to cool the fire that had sprung up between father and son."The nurses won't let you in as a regular visitor if you aren't family,especially if they're as sick as you say."

_Do I even dare tell them about the volunteer job?_

"Yeah, I guess."

In the end Sora got off easy, as his mother insisted he was only used because of his big heart.

 

 

Sora was back that next Saturday,the speech his parents gave him was of little consequence.In Sora's eyes, he was the only one making sense.

_They can't pretend to understand what these guys want, especially when they've never met any of them._

"Hello Sora."Tinker Bell gave Sora a tiny wave.

"Hey Ms. Wells."Sora smiled upon seeing the pixie.

"You have new medication to bring to Vexen.He was diagnosed with Stage four."

 _I guess he really has gotten a lot worse._ "Where did it spread, if I may ask."

"His stomach is filled with it, and a few tumors were found in his liver."Tinker Bell said it so professionally, so coldly, that it was hard to imagine she was telling the truth.But he saw the serious look on her face and knew it was true.

"Got it."

With Axel up and about again, Sora had his work cut out for him once again.

He apparently had not had enough from his excursion the previous week,because he seemed as determined as ever to get out again.Whenever Sora left to grab some paperwork from Tinker Bell, he'd notice a mass of spiked red hair following not far behind.When Sora went to clean out Vexen's bedpan( _He needs a bedpan now..._ ) which didn't take longer than twenty minutes.As he was finishing up he could hear Tinker Bell give an almighty roar.

"NUMBER EIGHT GET BACK TO YOUR ROOM BEFORE I PUT YOU IN THE E.R.!!!!"

Axel's hurried shuffling could be heard not long after.

It got to the point where Sora forced the red head to accompany him during his chores, to which the older man grumbled in complaint.

"Look at it from his perspective."Luxord mumbled while locked in a card game with Xigbar."Roxas hasn't received treatment in two weeks.Anyone would worry about their best friend."

"Damn!"Xigbar slammed his hand down on the floor in frustration.Sora glimpsed a two and four, not a good hand."Either way kid you should hang with princess red head while he gets his head on straight."

"Three years and he's the only one who wasn't able to accept it."Luxord shook his head, almost as if he pitied the man.

"Accept his cancer?I don't know he seems pretty ok to me."Sora didn't know what it was like to have cancer, but he figured he wouldn't feel like trying to bust out of a hospital at all times."What about Saïx?He seems to have taken it a lot worse."

"Nah that guy accepts and knows he's gonna die."Xigbar took Luxord's deck from him and started to shuffle himself(as if that would make a difference) "He's just being mopey 'cause he knows it was his own fault."

"But you guys might not die!" _Why do they all seem to be so convinced they're not gonna get better?!_ "Naminé got better, right?"

"But she didn't know."Xigbar finally pried his one good eye off the game to look at Sora.There was a severity just lying under the amber of his irises that made Sora freeze up."You don't know this, but when you've got an illness eating you up inside you don't think about getting better.You can only think about the pain.You think everyone here is hunky dory during the weekends?It's constant pain everywhere."

"The treatment is almost a relief."Luxord mumbled under his breath.

Xigbar turned back to his game."We don't think about getting better.It could happen, but none of us can spare a thought about that 'cause we're too busy wondering what death will feel like."

 

 

"Do you have to play it so loudly?"Xaldin grunted.

Demyx was getting use out of his Easter present.Ever since Sora walked in that Saturday he could hear moldy rock music creaking out of an old speaker.Some sort of artist with a voice like a dolphin was bleating throughout the hall of Ward 13, and it seemed to push Xaldin off the deep end.

"There is only one volume at which to properly listen to music!"Demyx declared."LOUD!!!"

Xaldin bunched some of his thinning black hair in his hand."Once a junkie always a junkie..."

"Demyx do you actually like this stuff?"Sora asked. _As much as I hate to kill his mojo....this sounds terrible..._

"Of course!"Demyx nodded his head with the tempo of the tune.

"What's their name?"

"No clue!"

Sora fought the desperate urge to face palm.

"Don't try to make sense of him."Tinker Bell had at some point entered the Ward and was standing behind Sora.

"Hey Ms. Wells.Need anything?"

"Oh I just need to do some tests on Vexen and Larxene.Shouldn't take too long.But I'll need you to distract Zexion and Marluxia so I can be alone with them."

 

 

"What madness is this?"Xaldin didn't look pleased at all. _For such a big guy he really is kinda a coward._

Sora had gotten some spare blankets from Roxas' old room( _He isn't using them_ ) and spread them out on the floor of the hall.The extra sheets were covering the windows to the outside while also draping over the hall lights.The resulting effect was almost pure darkness.The florescent lights shone dimly through the blankets, making it possible to make out faces through the gloom.

"Is this what I think it is?"Axel was sporting a Cheshire grin."Can a kid like you handle scary stories?"

"That depends on if any if you got some good ones."In reality Sora was horrible with horror movies.Riku and Kairi, who were apparently made of stone, used to tease him endlessly at how he kept hiding behind them while watching "The Ring" (Though honestly who wasn't afraid?!)

"Are we actually doing this?"Saïx asked, looking as though he'd rather be a anywhere else.

"Aw it's been years since I've seen a good horror flick!"Luxord rubbed his hands together gleefully."Course this won't really be the same, but the ambiance is cool."

There were clearly two groups of people.There were those who made a sport out of watching scary movies and loved trying to scare those around them.That group included Xigbar, Axel, Demyx, Luxord, Lexaeus and (surprisingly) Xemnas.

("You like scary stories Xemnas?"Demyx asked the older man.

The grey elder nodded his head, a small smile on his face."I used to have younger brothers who would try to scare me with their stories."

"Did you pretend you were scared?"Lexaeus wagered.

"No, I got in trouble for telling them the plot to Saw."

Sora noted that the stoic man could very well be a sadist.)

The other group was made up of those who couldn't stand looking at trailers for horror movies and had a hard time sleeping after browsing creepypasta.com. That group included Sora, Zexion(this didn't surprise Sora, as he couldn't imagine Eeyore sitting down to read Jeff the Killer) Xaldin, Saïx("Still afraid of "The Exorcist" Saï?" Axel had asked.The quiet man huffed in annoyance) and Marluxia.

"So I got one."Demyx started eagerly."Anyone ever heard of "1999"?"

Sora shook his head, trying not to show his immediate reaction to the title. _Why is it called "1999" it's because it takes place in 1999 how many murders took place that year how many people went missing is there any memorable events that could have sprung this oh god why did I suggest this?!?!?!_

"So there was this blogger named Elliot who grew up in a small town in Vermont."

Sora unconsciously moved closer to Xaldin, thinking the bigger man might help him feel a little braver.Unfortunately for Sora, Xaldin's eyes were widening slowly as he was listening to the story.

_Yep he's a coward._

"He was investigating this TV channel that was starting to concern parents in the area."Demyx continued."Their children had started going missing, so they believed the channel was run by some pedophile and was luring their kids to his house."

"So they left it to some blogger guy?"Xigbar scoffed.

Axel shushed him."Xig don't ruin it!"

_PLEASE RUIN IT!!!_

"As I was saying, he started watching the channel and came across a series called "Booby"."

"Who would let a children's show be named "Booby"?"Xigbar huffed a laugh.

"Can you not?"Luxord asked.

"Nope."

"Aaaanyway..."Demyx cast him an annoyed glare."He watched the show ten episodes in and stopped.The first episode was simple enough.It was just two real hands on a table, one of which was named Booby, and they were going about an adventure."

As Demyx went on describing how the episodes digressed, he felt him slowly sink into the people behind him.Axel gave him a reassuring pat on the shoulder, but Xaldin just watched Demyx with rapt attention.

"Then came an episode called "Playing With Scissors"."

_Nope nope nope nope._

"One hand was shaking, as if it was being forced in the air."

_Nope nope nope nope nope nopity nope nope nope._

"Booby came on to the screen with a pair of scissors, and he started to stab the other hand repeatedly.Muffled screams of a child could be heard off screen."

_NOPE NOPE NOPE I WANT THIS TO STOP I WANT THIS TO STOP RIGHT NOW!!!_

"After that Elliot stopped watching the channel."

Sora and crew continued listening to Demyx's regaling of the story as he remembered it, however once they got to the "Mr. Bear" part they were stopped."

"I don't want to listen anymore!"Zexion was hugging his knees and squeezing his eyes shut."Can we move on to a different story?!"

Marluxia, who was sitting next to him had his hands over his ears.Xaldin was trembling where he sat, and Sora had to make sure he wasn't crying.Saïx was holding Axel's arm in a death grip, though he refused to change his normally serious expression.

"It was just getting good too."Xemnas sighed.

"I wasn't finished."Demyx cried.The one eyed alcoholic patted him on the back and clears his throat.

"It's fine Dem.I got a story,"

"NOPE!!"Multiple voices rang out.

"Hope your bite is as big as your bark old man."Axel sniggered.

"Any of you hear the story "Where Bad Kids Go"?"

 

 

"Ok no more!"Luxord finally put his foot down.Whether it was because Zexion and Sora(Being the only ones that could possibly constitute as being kids) were close to tears, or because his own breath was coming in quick short pants, Sora couldn't tell.

_I'm going to hell aren't I?!?!_

Xigbar cackled."Well I had to top Demyx somehow.And I think I did."

Demyx was holding Marluxia,almost sitting in his lap."Please that w-was nothing!"

"Mar I'll get him off."Lexaeus stood up and pried the musician off of Marluxia.

The gardener seemed upset at the loss of contact to a not crazy person.

"Lex have you even been listening?"Axel asked.He seemed to be perfectly okay, however Saïx was trembling next to him.( _But he's keeping that poker face_ )

"Of course.It's just been weird that's all."

"Weird?"Xaldin asked.He was half laying in Xemnas' lap, apparently trying to hide how scared he was("Xaldin how old are you?"Xemnas had asked.)"Weird how?"

"Well the shows Xig and Dem talked about, I remember them."

This was met with complete silence.

"Y-You're joking right?"Luxord laughed, but there was an obvious hitch in his voice.

"No way, the shows were both shot in completely different places."Xigbar remained skeptic.

"Lebanon is only an hour away from Vermont."Lexaeus shrugged."I remember a few episodes growing up, they played reruns sometimes."

"Th-these shows were r-real?!?!"Zexion squeaked.

"Of course they weren't!"Axel rolled his eyes, but his own resolve seemed to be wavering.

"You're right."

"Huh?!"Everyone blinked.

Lexaeus grinned."I've never seen them in my life."

"Oh you little bitch!"Xigbar started laughing.Multiple sighs of relief could be heard.

"Quite the fun trick Lexaeus."Xemnas had a smile that, under the circumstances, only looked diabolical."I didn't think you were capable of a joke like that."

"Can we be done now?"Saïx sighed, sounding bored.

_Don't try to deny it wimp you're as scared as I am._

"I would like to tell a story."Xemnas started.

"Oh this oughta be good!"Xigbar rubbed his hands together greedily.

"It's called "Smiling Man"."

 

"Alright Sora I'm-"

"EEEEEEEEEEEEEHEHEHEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!!!!"

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!"

"...what are you all doing out here?!"Tinker Bell had poked her head out of Larxene's room just as Xemnas finished his story.Which was possibly the worst moment to have done so.

"M-M-Ms. Wells."Sora had tears in his eyes and was holding on to someone, not that he could see who through his tears.

"Good story Xem."Xigbar grinned."Though a little unbelievable."

"Then why are you shaking?"Axel asked.He was now clinging on to Saïx just as tightly, and Saïx had abandoned any notion of being brave, as his face was buried in Axel's shoulder.

"Cuz I'm excited!"Xigbar countered, though he was clearly disturbed.

"Whyyyyyy."Zexion whimpered.

"What is wrong with the world?!"Marluxia moaned.

Lexaeus was completely silent, though Sora could see the giant shaking from where he sat.

_This might have been a bad idea._

 

 

"Uncle was I a bad kid?"Zexion asked Vexen after all the blankets had been put away.

Sora had decided to go with Zexion, as the young man was afraid of being alone. ( _Not that I really wanted to be alone either..._ )Although many of the patients grouped up as opposed to spending the rest of the day alone.

("Hey Saï wanna listen to Demyx's radio with me?"Axel was almost begging.

"Axel that music is atrocious."Saïx went anyway.

"Hey Xigbar!"Luxord called out in a shaking voice."What do you say to another game of 52 pickup?"

Xigbar snatched the opportunity."Sure, but why don't we turn get Lex and Xaldin into it?"

"Marluxia let me sleepover!!!"

"Demyx go away!I'm rooming with Larxene."

"So ask her if I can sleepoveeeeer!!!"

Xemnas yawned."Well you're all lively today aren't you?")

Vexen, who was finally conscious again, gave his nephew a strange look."No.Why?"Vexen's voice was raspy and quiet.

_Not surprising considering he has cancer in three different places now._

"No reason."Zexion sighed in relief.

"Vexen I have some medication I need to give you."Sora took out Vexen's new pill bottle and set it on the table next to him."I'll get you some water."

"No,Zexion I want to talk to Sora."Vexen gasped, trying to catch his breath."Can-"

"I'll get the water."Zexion obviously didn't want his Uncle talking more than he needed to, so he walked out the door without being told.

"You shouldn't be talking now Vexen.You need to rest."Sora insisted.

Vexen raised a shaking, bony hand and flipped it, as if to say "Poppycock".

"Well what did you need to tell me?"

"I....want you to take care of them."

"What?"

"Sora..."Vexen took a deep breath.He had a lot to say."Ms. Wells came in here..........and told me I only have two options..........my liver and stomach won't be able to............to process my medication.............and chemotherapy would only help my............the pancreatic cancer, and even that...........doesn't always work..............."

Vexen had to catch his breath.Sora didn't try to rush him, didn't interrupt, only listened with growing dread.

"I have two choices.....................I can stay here, keep getting treatment and maybe I'll be cured.......................................or I can leave and be with family........"

"B-But..."

"That's right."Vexen nodded slowly."All my family.......is right here......and he can't leave................"

_So is there nothing...nothing that can be done?!_

"Was there anything you wanted to do?"Sora asked."If they're letting you leave, you can do anything you want!You can stay at my place until..."

Vexen shook his head softly."Sora, all my life I didn't want................I drifted like a jellyfish lost in the tide..................................I only realized how lost I was......when I was told I had cancer........................I found a home for the first time, when I held............a little blue bundle, looking up at me.......................eyes that didn't know his parents had died...............I gave up my freedom, and found a cage I can call...........................home....I'm happy."

_I hope Zexion isn't listening right now._

"These people Sora......take care of them."Vexen's bright green eyes shone with a fire that was not done yet, a fire that still had to burn.

_But there's nothing more we can do for that flame...nothing..._

Sora could only nod, the frog in his throat making it difficult to breathe.

"Uncle, here."Zexion came in with the glass filled with water.Zexion took some pills from the bottle, tilted Vexen's head back, and put them in his mouth.He carefully took the glass and poured some water down the old mans throat.With some coaxing on Zexion's part, the pills slid down Vexen's esophagus.

 _He hasn't told Zexion yet, otherwise he wouldn't have bothered to give him those...or perhaps he does know and is just holding on to a tiny glimmer of hope._ Sora couldn't intrude on the two any more than he already had, so he left them.

 

 

"Sora honey, you're home early today."Sora's mother was in the kitchen making dinner, his father hadn't come home from work yet.

"Yeah, they didn't need me anymore for today."Sora went into the kitchen, the scent of stewing vegetables in the air, and gave his mother a bone crushing hug.

"Sora?!"She obviously wasn't expecting it,but she readily accepted the sign of affection.

Sora wasn't early because they let him go early.He didn't rush home for fear of Smiling Man.(although that certainly might have had an affect of sorts)

After his conversation with Vexen, Sora couldn't stop thinking about what kind of strength people who raise children have.They make sacrifices for their children who don't always appreciate it, or even deserve it, they lose the title of 'person' and become a 'parent'.

_I don't know how people manage to do it._

"What's this for?"She asked, ruffling Sora's hair like she did when he was little.

"Eh, no reason."

 

 

"So did he actually do it?"Sora asked.

"No, so obviously everyone called him a pussy.I call him smart."Pence was leaning against the back of the chair in leisure, his beat up Nike sneakers resting on the table.

Wednesday's were still completely uneventful, however school wasn't.A story about one of Sora's classmates was going around, and as the only one who hadn't witnessed the event with his own eyes, he felt the need to ask the one person who wouldn't annoy the hell out of him.

"He didn't jump off a roof into a pool, and was drunk...I'm surprised he was sober enough to see how stupid that was."

"Welp."Pence shrugged."Goes to show ya not all drunken high school kids are idiot douche bags."

The friendly conversation(And their first extended conversation) was cut short by the phone ringing.Sora was closer to it, and due to the unspoken rule of "Whoever is closer has to get it" picked up the receiver."Twilight Textiles, how can we help you?"

"Hello, is Sora Strife there?"It was Tinker Bell.

"Speaking.Whats up Ms. Wells?"

"Sora I thought you should know, Vexen isn't doing so good."

_What?_

"We might put him in life support tonight, but I thought you might want to..."

"Yeah, I'll be right there."Sora hung up the phone and turned to Pence.

"Bad?"Pence must have noticed how pale Sora was getting.

"A friend of mine is in the hospital and I need to be there." _Shit I hope he doesn't think I'm lying._

Pence gave him a good one over."Ok, I believe you.I'll tell boss you had an emergency."

"Thank you so much." _I seriously owe that guy a solid._

 

 

"Ms. Wells?!"Sora burst through the doors of the hospital.Tinker Bell frantically gestured for him to enter while she talked to someone on the phone.Her blonde hair, normally stacked into a clean bun, was spilling from the hair tie.Small strands of blonde hair were spilling over her face, getting caught in her eyelashes.

If Sora wasn't in as big a rush, he might have marveled at how beautiful she looked when she wasn't so uptight.

Sora dashed down the hall and through the double doors leading to Ward 13.Upon arriving he bumped into two nurses on their way out.They glared at Sora before continuing along their way.

Hurrying to patient Number Four's room Sora opened the door.

Zexion was there, along with Xigbar, Axel, Saïx and Xemnas.They all sat in wheel chairs, except for Zexion who was sitting at his uncles side, holding one gnarled hand in both his.

Vexen was dying, of that Sora was sure.His bright green eyes were dull, slowly blinking every once in a while.He couldn't hold his own arm up, and he couldn't speak.

_If Vexen was strong enough to speak, he'd be comforting Zexion instead of letting him sit there._

"Ah, you made it."Xigbar's voice was slurred, and he gave a wave to Sora.

"Sora, you're here?"Zexion asked.

"Yeah, Tinker Bell called."Sora went to his side and held his shoulder."What did they say?"

"That...there's nothing more they can do..."Zexion's grey eyes looked particularly shiny in the dying sunlight.

"This could just be a bad spell."Sora muttered, not even managing to convince himself.

"Sora, you're my friend, but I kinda wanna punch you after that."Axel slurred from his wheelchair.

"Why are you guys talking like...?" _Like you're all high?_

"Treatment."Saïx muttered, his head lolling numbly."They let us out so we could be with Vexen."

_Oh right._

_I'm actually surprised Xigbar, Saïx and Xemnas are here._

"Zexion, don't crush the guy's hand."Axel tried to sound like his usual self, but he was loaded and could only manage to sound as sympathetic as...well, Xigbar.

"Hey uncle?"Zexion asked."You can hear me right?If you can, squeeze my hand."

Sora couldn't see the man's hand move, but Zexion must have felt something, because he continued.

"Uncle, you remember the first day I came to visit you on my own?I was five years old, and the woman you had drive me to and from the hospital was out with the flu, so I needed to get there on my own.It was my first time using the public bus.I knew where they took you, so I used the map on your bulletin board to find out where I needed to get off.The receptionist asked me where my parents were, and I didn't know what to say to her, so I just said "My father is staying here".She brought me here, to this very room, and asked you if you knew me."Zexion gave a small chuckle.

"You should have seen your face.You were so shocked....You got really mad at me, you yelled at me for leaving on my own.I started crying, I thought you'd be happy to see me.But you calmed down and gave me a hug, told me you were sorry, that you were proud of me for doing it on my own."

Zexion rolled the bony hand in his.

"I'm sorry."Zexion had tears in his eyes,his voice was shaking.Sora didn't want to see the man break down like that, but it was happening anyway."I'm sorry, I'm sorry I screwed up.I'm sorry you had to get treatment while taking care of a kid at the same time.I'm sorry."

"...hm..."Vexen hummed, so softly that Sora could barely hear it.

Zexion leaned down, putting his head to Vexen's ear.The old man's lips moved, though Sora could hear no sound.

Zexion sat upright.His soft sniffles were transforming into full on sobs.He grasped Vexen's hand again, holding on like it was a life line.

Axel, Xigbar, Xemnas, Saïx and Sora stayed with the young man all night, none saying a word.

Not even when Vexen's breathing slowed, and subsequently stopped, Zexion's wails crying out against the unfairness of it all.

 

 

"Sora Strife where have you been?!"Sora's father was the first to notice his son come through the door.His mother jerked awake, as she had been dozing off in the armchair.She sprang up and rushed to her son, examining him for any injuries and/or signs of intoxication.

"I'm fine mom."Sora numbly brushed off his mother's worried fingers.

"What were you up to?!It's two in the morning!Young man you are in a world of trouble!"

_Should I even tell them?_

"Sora you look really pale!And have you been crying?!Did something happen, I'm calling the police!"Sora's mother hurried to the phone.

"Aerith enough."Sora's dad was still giving his son the biggest "You done fucked up" look he could manage.

"One of the patients at the hospital died a few hours ago.I needed to help with things."

Those things being Sora had to be the one to get Ms. Wells and tell her while the others tried to calm down Zexion.He then had to join the morticians who needed to load Vexen's body( _Vexen's an "it" now, not a "he"..._ )onto a gurney and into the morgue, where he'd be prepared for a funeral and eventual cremation.

_Though there's no one to pay for a funeral,Vexen's only family was Zexion, and his death would barely be a paragraph in the newspaper._

Sora's parents faces froze, one in a state of worry, the other pissed.After a few seconds they both melted into what can only be called pity.

"I see.I'm sorry Sora."Aerith gave her son a comforting hug.

"Well..."The fight looked like it left Cloud's eyes.He sighed and rubbed his eyes ( _They must be pretty tired, having had to wait for me all night_ ) then said "Well you only need to go back two more times."

If Sora was in his right mind, he would have lashed out at that statement.Fortunately, he wasn't, and instead he trod up the stairs to his room, trying to forget the sound of Zexion's cries.

 

 

"Good morning Zex."Sora walked in to Zexion's room that Saturday and greeted the patient as delicately as possible.

He received no greeting in response.Zexion was nose deep in "Brave Story".

"Hey Zexion."

Still no answer.

Sora decided to give him his space and left him to his book. _I wonder if there's a way to change his destiny._

 

 

"Ever play Black Jack kid?"Luxord asked.

"No."

"Shouldn't have told him that Sora."Axel sighed."He'll con the socks off of you."

"He could be trying to hustle me."

_Like I could bluff against this guy._

Luxord shuffled the cards.Everyone was off to their own devices, the mood noticeably colder ever since Vexen's death.Luxord, Sora, Xigbar, Axel, Lexaeus and Demyx were hanging in the hall.Luxord and Sora were enraptured in their card game while the others lazily watched the game unfold. Marluxia had a dizzy spell, so he and Larxene were bedridden.Though Marluxia opted to use the spare bed in Larxene's room as opposed to his own.Xemnas and Saïx were most likely talking somewhere, Zexion hadn't left his room since Sora left him, and Xaldin was sleeping in his room, treatment had been quite taxing apparently.

"Damn."Sora wasn't even surprised when he wound up losing the first hand.

"You're not gonna win against a professional gambler kid."Xigbar draped his legs lazily over the arm of the hospital chair.

"He was actually pro?"

"You know it kid."Luxord started to break the deck again."Went to all the big venues, stayed in five star hotels, lived it up in the big cities, the whole shtick."

"Lux over there lives the life guys like me can only dream of."Xigbar drawled, his legs swinging leisurely.

"Wow." _And then he got sick.So why stay in a crappy hospital like this?_

"So why stay in a crappy hospital like this?"Demyx voiced the question Sora had wanted to ask."You had the money to go anywhere, they could have cured your cancer early on.Why come here to die?"

Luxord shrugged."My family."

Xigbar's legs stilled.

"I traveled everywhere, never thinking about the people who loved me.When I found out I was sick, I went rushing home expecting a big welcome, some additions to my pity party."Luxord had started to deal, his story not important enough to get in the way of the game."Know what I got?"

No one said anything.Axel looked around the room awkwardly.Dem was listening intently to the euro.

"What?"The musician asked.

"'You're not my son', 'Go back to Vegas asshole', 'I stopped giving a shit years ago'.Practically pushed me out of my old home."Lux had finished dealing and was checking his own hand.

_Wow...I guess it would make sense for them to be pissed if Luxord never came to see them.But would my parents do that if I did the same thing?_

_Doubtful.The second I stay away from home without calling in 24 hours they would hunt me down and drag me home...they wouldn't abandon me._

"Stayed in town to see if they would lose their anger and come visit...but they never did."Luxord looked over to Sora."Any tosses?"

Sora, who hadn't even glanced at his hand yet, clumsily handed Luxord two cards without checking.

"And that's why you're in Ward 13."Xigbar stood up abruptly and retreated into his own room.

"Ward 13."Axel mumbled."The place where they put the fuck ups, society's dumpster for the ones who assed away their entire lives with stupid shit, where the nobodies go."

The chant hadn't sounded so lonely when Roxas said it with him.

 

 

"Larxene, can you stand up?I'll change your sheets, and you can take a shower."Sora brought a cup of water for emaciated blonde.Her grey face glared up at him, and she gave an annoyed growl.

"I can do it.Just get me new sheets, my bed smells like ass."

"You have the mouth of a saint."Marluxia rolled his eyes.He had set himself up in the empty cot, and brought the Paupu sapling with him.It hadn't made any noticeable progress, though that was to be expected, they had extraordinarily long lifespans after all.

Larxene took a cane out from behind her bed and trudged into the small shower room.Sora got to changing the sheets while the sound of running water emanated from the closed door.

"Have you been to see Zexion?"

Sora blinked in surprise.Usually the flower man wasn't one to start conversation, especially with him. "Yeah."

"Is he ok?"He didn't sound particularly concerned, more like a teacher asking a struggling student if they understood an equation.

"As ok as he can be.Are you feeling any better?"

"Yeah, just needed some rest is all."It was a rare occurrence for him to feel sick like that, so Sora was a tad worried.

No more words passed between the two.Marluxia was nothing like Axel, who could lead an entire conversation by himself.

"The sapling doing alright?"

"Yes, it's pretty delicate concerning how much water to give it, how much sun it needs and what temperature it prefers.But once I found a routine for it, the sapling started making ample progress."

"But...it doesn't look any different."

"Not all change is on the outside."

There was a loud banging sound.Larxene swore loudly from the shower.

"Larxene you ok?!"Sora asked.

"Fuck I...I can't get up."

"Is the door locked?I'll come in and help you-"

"No!No way in hell!Don't come in!"

Sora sighed."Marluxia, could you help her?"

Marluxia eased himself out of bed."Larxene, I'm coming in."

"No!Stay out!I'd rather the kid come in!"

Marluxia, creased his brow in concern.He didn't seem to understand why she was so upset.Sora's worry deepened.

_Why wouldn't she want Marluxia to see her?It's not just a modesty thing, so what?_

Sora opened the cabinet.There were three regular t-shirts, and about five white robes identical to the ones the other patients wore.He grabbed a fresh one and closed the drawer again.

"Larxene we're coming in, I've got a robe for you."

"Stop!"

Sora opened the door and got a face full of steam.He and Marluxia carefully entered the bathroom and covered Larxene's body while she cussed and struggled on the floor.

Marluxia carefully helped her to her feet and led her out of the bathroom.Sora was about to follow, when he noticed it.

Sitting at the base of the drain, preventing the runaway water from escaping, was a large mass of blonde hair.It was not the tiny amount Sora occasionally discovered in his bathtub in the morning, it looked as though there were a small,blond, wet possum sitting at the base of Larxene's shower.

_It's....been a while since she last showered hasn't it?_

Larxene was brooding in her bed, her blonde hair clinging to her scalp, some of the extra moisture running down her neck and soaking into her robe.

"Was that so hard?"Marluxia groaned as he settled into bed.

Larxene refused to look at Sora or Marluxia.

 

About two weeks before she died, Kairi started wetting the bed.Sora had gone to visit her, to find that she wasn't sitting bed, but sitting on a gurney outside her room while a  nurse patiently took away her wet sheets.

"Kai?You feeling ok?"

Kairi said nothing.Her head was turned away from Sora's.

"Kai?"

Sora didn't get an answer out of her,he had to find out from Riku once new white sheets were placed on the bed.

"Why was she so embarrassed? She's sick, this stuff happens." _I wouldn't laugh at a person because of something their disease caused._

Riku paused for a moment, he tugged his bottom lip with his teeth as if he were thinking about doing something rather unpleasant.But after apparently reaching a conclusion, he opened a drawer to the table next to his bed, dug past loose papers and little knick-knacks until he found what he was looking for.

It was a small red pamphlet about the size of Sora's palm, there only seemed to be a few pages in it.Sora took it from his friend and started reading it.

"What is this?"Sora asked. _It's just talking about what HIV and AIDS does to the body._

Riku was no longer looking at Sora."Skip to the last page."

Sora did as he was told, and read the heading of the last page.

_**HIV Wasting Syndrome** _

Sora almost dropped the packet right then and there.

_**When the body starts to deteriorate various bodily functions start to malfunction.Cold skin, loss of bladder or bowel control, sight/hearing problems, inability to sleep and fluid collecting at the back of the throat.** _

Sora almost couldn't bring himself to meet Riku's eyes.

"A nurse gave us those a few weeks ago.Don't know what would compel her to."Riku looked like he wanted to throttle that nurse.

_Can't say I blame him.I want to kill the nurse that would give this to Kairi._

"But this was just an accident."A nervous laugh escaped Sora's mouth."Just one time, you shouldn't immediately assume just because she showed one of the symptoms of this syndrome doesn't mean she's, you know." _Dying._

Riku nodded, like he wanted so very much to believe in what Sora was telling him.His silver hair was grown past his shoulders by that point, so it brushed his bony shoulders.

Two weeks later Riku woke up to find that his little sister was dead.

 

 

"Axel, I think this is getting ridiculous."Sora led his taller friend into his bed.Another ridiculous escape attempt by the red head was leaving him in a bad mood."Try to take a nap, you've gotta be exhausted."

Axel was panting.An afternoon of running around behind Sora's back had left him winded, and he practically collapsed on the hospital cot.

"At least I managed...to wind you..."Axel grinned between pained gasps."I'm...getting closer...."

_Not close enough._

After making sure Axel wouldn't try to make an immediate break for it, Sora left his room.

Lexaeus was fiddling with a metal toy on the bench in the hallway.It was almost time for Sora to leave, by that point in the day the patients were usually all in bed, the event of the day having tuckered them out.

"Hey Lex, what are you doing this late?" _Well...late for them.Their schedule isn't that different from that of someone in a nursing home._

"I don't feel tired, so I thought I could train a bit."

"What're you messing with?"Sora plopped down next to the giant.The behemoth had two pieces of metal, one of them shaped like a crown, the other shaped like a heart.They were both connected, and it seemed like Lexaeus was trying to disconnect them.

"You're supposed to separate the two shapes.But if you rush it you'll have to start all over again."

"This is part of your 'training'?" _What training?_

"I wanted to join the Reserves, you know before I was diagnosed."

 _Military!_ "So, the toy...?"

"This is supposed to be an exercise for rational and calm thinking.They have a test, so when I take it I want to make sure I stay calm."

"Ah..."

 

 

Ten minutes later as Sora was talking with Tinker Bell, getting ready to leave, Lexaeus was still messing with the toy.

 

 

"Good morning Xemnas...Xemnas?"Sora heaved his satchel over one shoulder while using his shoulder to push the wooden door open.Out of the corner of his eye, he had noticed the silver haired man,though didn't receive a greeting in response.

Xemnas was sitting forward on the bench, his elbows resting on his knees while his hands supported his head.His face was pointed downward at the ground.

"Is something wrong?"

Xemnas looked up at Sora, his amber eyes filled with a lifetime of disappointment and grief."Naminé has had a relapse...she's being re-admitted."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -Brave Story is an actual book, it's about 800 pages long, and it's my favorite ever.I highly recommend you read it!
> 
> -I didn't mean to make Aerith and Cloud douches... I just modeled them after my own parents...........I'm going to try not to think about that too hard  
> ...  
> -All of the creepy pastas mentioned are actual stories, none of which belong to me, that you can read on www.creepypasta.com
> 
> -I'm trying not to insert any ships in this, at least none that don't make at least a tiny bit of sense(a.k.a. Marluxia x Larxene) but I can feel my inner fangirl screaming...she's trying to take over (´°̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥ω°̥̥̥̥̥̥̥̥｀)
> 
> Thank you very much for reading, and thanks those of you who gave me kudos on the last chapter, it's what helped me struggle through this past month of writers block.THANK YOU!!!!


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